


Nothing's Fair in Love and War

by SakumiYukime



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Actually trusting me is a super bad decision, Allura and Lance are Siblings, Altean Hunk (Voltron), Altean Lance (Voltron), Alternate Universe - War, Angst with a happy ending?, At least that's what my Beta says, Dorks be dorks, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Feelings and Pain, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Heavy Angst, Keith gets gayer with every line, Keith is bad with feelings, Langst, M/M, Mermaid!Allura, Mermaid!Coran, Mermaid!Hunk, Mermaids are not evil, Mutual Pining, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pidge's gender isn't known, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Possessive Keith (Voltron), Protective Keith (Voltron), Protective Lance (Voltron), Salty Keith (Voltron), Slow Burn, Someone stop me, Suicide Attempt, That depends on your definition of happy, The Author Regrets Nothing, They're misunderstood, This could have turned out a lost worst than it does. Trust me..., Warning:, What is love, bless Keith's gay heart, everyone else is human, mermaid civilisation is Altea, mermaid!lance, or maybe even, same btw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-22
Updated: 2018-03-20
Packaged: 2018-11-30 08:40:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 79,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11460021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SakumiYukime/pseuds/SakumiYukime
Summary: For centuries humanity has been at war with the vile creatures from deep sea. The mermaids prey on humans, killing them, drowning them or manipulating their mind with angelic voices.Keith, lost everything to these monsters. His home and his parents. Even Shiro, the only person he ever dared to call family after his parents' death, had been taken away. Lost forever in those dark deeps after the failure of the kerberos mission.And with that, they had also taken Keith will to live.But those that take, can also give it back.





	1. Chapter 1

_Darkness._

A dense mist slowly enveloped the wooden ship. Actually, it looked more like a small escape boat, floating around, completely lost in the deep sea.

On board were a small crew of sailors and all of them were wearing the Garrison uniform.

“What should we do now, Shiro?” a brown haired male asked. He appeared to be scared. Well, scared would be an understatement. He looked terrified. His eyes were wide open while he tried not to tremble too much.

The slightly older male gazed at him. He seemed distressed. In his eyes was an ocean of uncertainty. Would he survive? Would his comrades survive? This whole situation looked pretty hopeless, but he had to keep his team strong and ready for what could come. He had to give them hope. If there was only a slight chance for them to make it out alive, he would have to voice it, loud, so that everyone could hear it.

“We just have to keep sailing in this direction!” Shiro answered. His tone was as firm he could manage in that moment. “We should be really close to shore. We’ll make it! We’re almost there!”

“I don't like this mist!” another man voiced. He seemed far away even tho he was close by, his voice drifting along with the boat. “We can’t see anything in this fog.”

“Maybe they won't be able to see us!” The brown haired male scratched the back of his neck, realizing how stupid was what he had just said.

“Don’t be ridiculous boy…” an old man started from the other side of the small ship, “Those monsters can smell human flesh from miles away! They are coming for all of us! And they’ll drag us to the depths!”

“We just have to stay focused!” Shiro insisted, “We’ve made it this far! We just have to hang on a little longer!” His hand delicately fell on his companion’s shoulder, “It’s ok, Matt! We’ll make it!” He said, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself.

_Cold._

It was sudden. The freezing breeze swept their hair back. Then, the humming began. It was a beautiful sound. Relaxing. Shiro could feel his whole self at peace for a moment.

He had returned home, safe and sound. His little brother was crying in his arms, relieved that Shiro had made it. He could feel his cold hands caressing his cheeks. Sweetly.  

Blinded by the magnificent melody, the humans didn’t realize as the monsters guided them into the cold waters. To their deaths.

_Screams._

Shiro’s eyes opened rapidly as if he had awakened from some sort of hypnosis. He looked around troubled. Everyone seemed to be enchanted by the tone, swinging in synchrony with the ocean itself. He had to help them.

“Matt!” He shook the brown haired male trying to wake him up from his trance, but nothing happened, “Matt!” Shiro insisted. But luck wasn't on his side, and before he could save anyone, he himself was lost once more. Lost to that beautiful tone that sang him home.

“Shiro,” a familiar voice called him, gently. Again and again. It was definitely his little brother. Begging him to come home. Shiro followed the sound, reaching with his hands for it. Following it. Following it to the depths.

When he came to his senses it was already too late. He was underwater, running out of breath and the monsters circled him. Bright eyes were the only thing he could see in the dark cold water. He could hear his comrades screams, sinking in him through his sink, deeper and deeper reaching the core where his own fears were stored. Sharp fangs attacked, devouring him whole.

 

Keith woke up abruptly, sweat sliding down his forehead. His heart was pounding faster than ever, so fast it felt like it would leave his chest. But it wouldn't. He knew it wouldn't.

The black haired teen had grown use to this feeling, but somehow it could still surprise him every time, leaving him without breath. _That was a weird dream_ , he thought, moving to his side while trying to calm himself. Every night, without exception, he had a slightly different dream about it - The Kerberos Mission.

“Keith,” a voice called from the other side of the room, “If you don't hurry up, you’ll definitely be late!”

It was Pidge, his roommate. Keith made an annoyed groan. “Iverson has been on edge lately so-”

“I know. I know.” he agreed with a sigh, “I’ll be ready in no time!”

“I’m not waiting for you…” Pidge replied leaving the room.

_I don’t have a problem with that at all…_

Keith enjoyed being alone. Calm and silent places. No wonder he liked staying awake at night so much, glimpsing at the stars and their bright light. He sighed again, this time finally leaving his bed on the bowling he was sharing with Pidge and picked the Garrison uniform that impeccably laid on the chair near the window.

 _I have no idea what I’m doing…_ His eyes glanced at the ocean, far away. _Shiro…_

His mind slowly drifted deep in thought. He could hear Iverson addressing the whole crowd that had gathered in the biggest amphitheater of the Garrison base.

“Everyone, please,” he started, asking for silence, “As we all know, Humanity has been at war with the mermaids for many centuries.” By now everyone in the room was quiet and listening to the man “Those vile creatures, for years, have preyed on us. They’ve drowned and taken thousands of lives. We’ve all lost loved ones to those monsters,” he took a deep breath, “But the Garrison fights and will keep fighting for the people that want to live. For those that refuse to die with all the strength left on their bodies. For so many years Humanity has danced in the hands of those creatures. But the tides have turned now! Humanity has changed! We’re no longer crawling away in fear. We have developed our ways to fight and take back what is ours!” The crowd had gone crazy cheering as the speech progressed. Iverson looked pleased so he waited for everyone to quiet down. “Soon, one of the most important missions to defeat the mermaids will take place!” He declared and everyone shouted in agreement, “Let us salute our heroes!” Two men walked to the stage. Shiro and Matt. Iverson looked pleased to have them there with him, “This two brave men will risk their lives for the future of Humanity on the Kerberos mission!”

The thought faded away from Keith’s mind leaving him lost and staring at the ocean.

_He hated it._

Those dark, cold depths filled with the screaming voices of everyone he had ever cared about. And now, Shiro, too, had joined them. Keith’s heart would skip a beat every time he remembered Iverson’s words, “The Kerberos mission was- was a failure,” he said faking a pained look.

_Shiro..._

Iverson waited a second before adding, “All crew members were lost to the sea.”

_Shiro… is..._

“Today is indeed a sad day for Humanity!”

_Shiro… is gone?_

“...But the Garrison will not stop-” Keith doesn't really remember what Iverson said after that. Time itself stopped around him. His heart beating so fast he could barely feel it. His mind was spinning as he tried to fight the turmoil of emotions that burned beneath his skin.

_Shiro._

Shiro was the only one he had left. And now. Now Shiro was gone. Taken away from him by those monsters.

It was Shiro’s idea to join the Garrison and Keith ended up going along. He never really said it to anyone but the truth was he was terribly afraid of the ocean and especially of what lived there. Ironically enough, he had turned out to be one of the best students that ever set foot on the Garrison. But what was the point of being the best if he couldn’t save Shiro.

Keith took another look out the window. Shiro was somewhere out there. Dead? Alive? Hurt? Alone? And he was here. _Trapped._ He wanted to get out there and look for Shiro. But without the Garrison’s permission, he couldn't. They controlled all the accesses to the beaches as a way to protect and prevent further deaths. Pretty much all the other places where land touched sea were cliffs, and there was no way to go down one of those and survive to tell the story.

But Keith refused to give up on Shiro when he had been the only person that never gave up on him.

As he walked to the door, with his uniform already on, Keith realized how messy his hair was. As usual. He made a quick visit to the bathroom and running his fingers through his mullet, made it look less terrible. Or so he hoped. He then left the shared room and walked down the hallways making his way to the amphitheater where they had theoric classes.

They learn quite a few things, being the basic anatomy of mermaids one of the most important subjects. Why? Simple. To know where to strike while attacking.

There were two places to aim at when trying to take down a mermaid. Gills or tail. If it can’t breathe underwater it will have to surface. If it can’t swim it can't get away. Keith knew all that like the back of his hand. They also had survival classes and some basic engineering lessons to handle and fix their ships in case of malfunction. He made the last turn before reaching the amphitheater, eyes widening for a second as he realized the confusion that had formed in front of the doors.

That was unusual. Most of the times, excluding some people that waited for their friends in front of the main door, the students would just walk inside and take a seat. Then, when the professor arrived the door would be closed and no one would be authorized to enter or leave before the class had finished.

“Keith!” A familiar voice called. Keith looked around but didn't spot anyone that seemed to be talking to him. “It’s me, you anti-social emo!”

Pidge. Of course. He should have looked down. “Sorry, didn’t notice you,” he added, “too many people around.”

“Eh… Whatever.” Pidge adjusted the glasses making them sparkle slightly. “Class has been canceled!”

“What?-”

“I know. It looks like something big is gonna happen!” Keith's mind drifted immediately.  _Shiro… Maybe…_

“Do you think it has to do with Kerberos? Maybe the crew made it?”

“I sure hope so…” Pidge murmured.

“What did you say?” The boy raised his voice slightly to make his voice audible through the crowd.

“I said I don’t know!” Pidge was talking louder too, “We have to wait to find out!”

It didn’t take long. First, they were instructed to orderly enter the amphitheater, then Iverson appeared. Keith’s heart was beating so fast. that had to be a new record. The man cleared his throat before starting.

“Cadets, as you have been informed, today is a big day for all of you! Well, most of you!” He corrected himself, “Today will be your first field mission!” He announced. The crowd was unsettled and excited with the news. Iverson waited for a couple of seconds before continuing, “As you know, only some of you will have the chance to participate. Of course, the selection has already been decided based on your scores and performance in class. Those whose names are called must head to the central area of facility 2. There, you will be informed about the mission. The others can take it easy for the rest of the day.”

Keith would have rather heard Shiro was ok, but a field mission was a good opportunity. Maybe he could find some clue, something that would lead him to Shiro. Anything. He took a deep breath, a small smile cracking in his lips as he listened to the names Iverson called.

“... Ellis Morrison, Robin Daniels, Luther Cannon, Pidge Gunderson and Neal Hawkins” Keith blinked and furrowed his brows. Maybe he was just distracted and didn’t hear it. He was top of his class so there was no way they wouldn't call his name. He turned to Pidge.

“Did you-”

“They didn’t call your name!” the voice sounded extremely surprised. Keith’s heart dropped. That was his chance. His only chance! He couldn’t let it slide away like that. “That makes no sense. The way the sorting is made… You should have been first one on the list!” His little companion was right. As usual.

“Maybe they just skip it accidentally…” Pidge was about to argue how highly unlikely that was but Keith continued, “I’ll go talk to Iverson.”

“Keith!” he could hear Pidge calling him. Keith ignored, making his way through the crowd. He somehow managed to escape the confusion, walking out one of the back doors. Iverson was leaving too, starting to make his way down the hall.

“Sir!” Keith called and rushed towards the man.

“Is there a problem, Cadet?”

Keith hesitated for a second. He hadn't really thought how to say it. He just rushed his way. As usual. “Hum, Yes!” He admitted, trying to buy some time to think of the best way to put it, “Sir, I’ve scored best in my class but I didn't hear my name being called.”

“It wasn't a mistake if that is what you are trying to imply. Is there a problem with that?...”

“Yes!” Keith admitted. His heart pounding like crazy in his chest, “Why haven’t I been selected! It’s unfair. With all due respect. I’ve been working very hard for this, Sir!”

“I don't think I owe you any explanations, cadet!” Keith was a boiling hot mess now. They weren't just making him lose the chance to look for Shiro, they also wouldn't tell him why!

“Sir! I scored like no one ever did in those test! I’ve been waiting for a field mission for so long. Why am I not allowed to go?” he insisted.

“Cadet,” Iverson started, ready to ditch Keith but as he saw the look in the boy’s eyes he decided otherwise, “It’s actually very simple. Your companionship with one of the victims of the Kerberos mission was taken into account.”

_What?... I can’t go because of Shiro?..._

“Even if you don’t appear to be troubled by the situation. It is still a very delicate one. There is no need to rush yourself.”

“Sir! I’m fine! I can do it! It’s not that much of a deal!” He lied, “We’re not even blood-related. Sure we were close but-”

“Cadet! The decision has already been made!”

“Sir, please!” Keith voice raising a bit more than he expected it to, “I am fine! I really am! I’m ready for this! I can do it!”

“Cadet!” Iverson’s voice was even louder, “Are you refusing a superior's order?” He looked mad. He was mad.

“No, Sir!” Keith automatically returned. But the following second had him already struggling not to beg to Iverson once more. The man seemed to notice that.

“If you keep insisting or if this sort of situation happens again,” His voice was harsh and bitter, “You’ll be expelled!” Keith could feel a sarcastic laugh on his lungs. Was that suppose to scare him? _Joke’s on you, I never liked to be in Garrison, to begin with._ Keith only cared about Shiro. Now more than ever. He could bet those jerks didn't give a damn about what had happened to the crew of the Kerberos mission. Maybe there had been a chance to save them but they decided to do nothing and sit comfortably far away from the ocean. Oh, but he wasn't going to get away with that. Keith was ready to burst into full rage mode when he felt something grabbing his arm. His head snapped in the direction.

“Yes, Sir! It won't happen again!” It was Pidge, “My roomy here just had a bad night, he probably skipped breakfast too so he’s kinda moody! Don't mind it, Sir!” Iverson raised a brow but decided to ignore the situation, and walked away.

“Pidge! Stop!” Keith protested as the small one tried to drag him down another hall. “That guy is a farce. Future of humanity my ass! He only cares about himself!”

“Keith calm down! You’ll get expelled!”

“Like a give a damn! I’ll gladly walk out myself!”

“How will you look for Shiro, then!” Pidge argued. _Shiro…_ “You know civilians aren't allowed near shores! You’ll never set foot near a beach for the rest of your life! And I assure you, if Shiro is alive he will be in one of those!” Keith sighed. Pidge was right. Again.

“I know…”

“You calming down? Man, you sure like to blow up at everybody! Even Iverson, huh?” Keith didn’t say anything. “Sure the guy is an ass! I agree with you there! I also don’t believe what they’ve told us about Kerberos! There’s just something fishy about it!” Keith narrowed his eyes. “I’ll help you out!”

“What?”

“You want to find out what happened right? And if there are any survivors!” Keith nodded, “Well, me too! We have a common goal, so why not? Plus we’re roommates so we can always discuss stuff without dragging much attention to us.”

“Why a-”

“Sorry but I really have to go now! I’m on the field mission! I’ll keep an eye open for clues! Tell you everything when I get back!” Pidge affirmed already heading away, not giving Keith much of a chance to say or ask anything. The black haired teen sighed and decided to head back to his room. Pidge decided to make a run for it. “Sorry about that Keith… Nothing personal.”

 

* * *

 

"Wow! You are the most beautiful creature I've ever set my eyes on!" the voice resonated through the waters.

“Lance! Could you, _please_ , stop staring at your reflection!”

“Chill, Hunk!” the handsome mermaid replied, eying his friend from the corner of the eye, just slightly annoyed. His clear blue eyes were the same color as the soft marks above his cheeks. “It’s not every day our deepwater exploration pays off!” he said staring at his reflection and pointing finger guns at it.

“Lance! Lance!” Hunk started again, frowning at how bright Lance’s smile was, “Now, you know I hate to be the voice of reason here, always, but clearly one of us has to do it!” Hunk’s eyes stared for a moment at his friend that continued to make poses in front of the mirror, carefully admiring the tattoos his arms and back. The mermaid sighed. “We have to get back, Lance!” he insisted swinging his yellow tail around, “If your sister finds out! If she- If she does- Oh goddess! I don't even want to think about it!”

“Then don't think about it!” he spared his friend a look, flipping his ocean blue fins.

“She’ll kill me, Lance! I’m too young to die!”

“She won't…” Lance rolled his eyes, “Stop making such a drama. We’re not even at the surface…”

“DON’T-”

Lance let out a high pitched scream, caught by surprise at his best friend sudden reply.

“-Don't even say that word!” Hunk protested as Lance eyed him playfully.

“Say what?” The blue tailed mermaid insisted innocently.

Hunk almost interrupted his friend, “Ohh ohh! You know what I’m talking about, Lance! You’re playing a dangerous game here.”

“You mean,” he made a brief pause as Hunk expression reprimanded him, “ _surface_?”

“Why do you have the need to do that!”

The brown haired mermaid let out a small laugh before losing interest in the mirror. He slowly swam towards the other side of the sunken ship they had found, “It’s a shame all these got ruined tho,” he continued staring at a shelf of books.

“Don’t ignore me, man!” Hunk cried out, “You know I’m right! I know I’m right! So why don't we just save yourselves a lot of trouble and just _go back_!”

“Hunk, buddy!”

“Oh don’t you buddy me now, man!”

“Listen,” Lance hesitated for a moment as his mind drifted. Going back meant being _trapped_ and being constantly reminded of the great deeds expected from him. Lance shook his head. “I’m just going to check the upper part of the ship! Maybe I’ll find something even rarer than a mirror!” He looked at it again, making a sly smirk at himself. “Then we can go!” He started to swim upwards.

“Wait, Lance!” He blue eyed creature stopped and looked at his friend wondering what was his problem now. “Swear it!”

“I swear it!”

“Decently!”

Lance let out an annoyed groan but proceed anyway, “I, Lance Mcclain, prince of Altea and all mermaids, here swear in the name of the Goddess that we will head back to Altea as soon as I’m done checking the upper floor of this magnificent human ship!” his stance dropping as soon as he finished, “Is that good enough for you?” he asked raising a brow and swimming away.

“Wait Lance! Don't leave me here alone! By myself! In a human ship!”

Lance swam away ignoring Hunk’s prayers. He could feel the water in his fins and his hair slowly moving with the currents. He loved to swim and he loved the water. He loved the taste of salt in his lips and the way his scales would shine with the sunlight. Even the way the sun rays lighted the water into thousands of blue shades. It was beautiful. Lance could never get tired of it.

He felt a smile forming on his lips. But nothing could compare to the rain. It was definitely his favorite. It completely transcended him how not-salt-water could fall from the sky. Unfortunately, Lance never had a chance to feel the rain. The best he got was stare at it, once, from the bottom of the ocean. He saw as the not-salt-water drops touched the sea creating beautiful circular patterns. It looked amazing. Beautiful. Lance couldn't even begin to imagine what it would look like seen from land.

“Lance!” a familiar voice called him.

“What is it this time, Hunk! I’ve told you I’m almost done!” he protested turning around to face his friend “Allura?” his voice almost cracking in surprise. He repeated it with a more confident voice, “Allura?! What are you doing here?”

“I should be the one asking you that!” the beautiful mermaid with white hair replied. She had blue eyes, but there were also some shades of pink in her pupils. “You know perfectly well you are not allowed to leave the castle!” she scolded, “Especially without telling anyone!”

“Hey! I told Hunk!” Lance protested pointing at his friend, who was magnificently hiding behind an old chair.

“Do I need to remind you what happened last time you decided to _explore_ by yourself!”

“No…” He murmured annoyed, gazing away from his sister.

“Good! Now! We are heading back right now!” Lance was about to complain but Allura cut him off “No! And you are grounded!”

“Allura… come on, Sis! You can’t do that!”

“Actually, Lance, she can… She is the current ruler of Altea, buddy! She can do whatever she wants!” Hunk felted the need to point out. Allura stared at him confused “Your highness…” the mermaid added bowing slightly, behind the chair.

“Allura…” Lance protested once more, “You can't be serious! I’m not a kid anymore…”

“Well you sure act like one!” the mermaid reprimanded again, “So you will be punished accordingly!”

“Allura…”

“Do not even bother! You are not leaving the castle for at least the next lunar cycle!”

“A lunar cycle?!” Lance’s mouth dropped “Allura that’s a lot!”

“I will raise your punishment every time you complain about it!” The blue tailed mermaid sighed, but he didn't try to say anything resigning to his fate. A terrible fate.

“Princess!” Another mermaid appeared. He had light skin, which was pretty rare for mermaids, and a mustache, “We’re being attacked!” Allura seemed to freeze for a second.

“Allura?” Lance hesitantly said.

“Coran, call up the warriors immediately!” Coran sprinted off as soon and he heard his orders, “Hunk, I will have to ask you a favor!”

“Please don't make me fight Humans, Princess. They’re very scary. I’d-”

“I need you to go back to Altea and warn everyone to remain inside their houses!”

“Yes, princess! Of course!” He sweetly smiled.

“Lance,”

“Yes!”

“You are going back to the castle and staying there!”

“Oh come on, Allura!” he uttered, “I could help!”

“You will help a lot by staying inside the castle!”

“But-”

“I will raise your punishment to 2 lunar cycles!”

Lance’s mouth dropped, no words coming out of it. “Fine. I'll go! I’ll quiznacking stay trapped inside for an entire lunar cycle!”

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Keith had decided to settle down in his room, but having a whole free day wasn't helping.

Normally, classes were an escape for his mind. Even if he didn't enjoy them that much, it was still better than constantly thinking what could have happened to Shiro. Every night. Every day. He’d think so much about it. What could have happened. What could have gone wrong.

Keith had imagined more scenarios than he could count or remember. Most of them constantly haunting his mind during day or night. 

Shiro and Matt were the best of the best in the Garrison, dying alone and so mysteriously didn't felt right. Something was off.

At least, he wanted to believe so. 

The black haired boy stared at the sea once more as he laid in bed. He felt so empty without Shiro. Numb. It was like a hole had been made in the place where his heart should be. And, even tho that place felt so empty and hollowed, it still hurt. It hurt so much Keith was willing to do anything to make it stop.

He took a deep breath, _It has been a month since Kerberos_ , he tried to stop the thought. But he couldn't, _There’s no way Shiro could have made it for so long._ Keith bit his own lip, in a futile attempt to stop it from shaking, _Shiro is dead!_ The thought sank in his mind. Now more than ever. _He's dead! He is never coming back!_ He muffled a sob, _I’m alone!_ _Without Shiro… I’m alone!_ His eyes started to water against his will.

No!

That was no time to be crying! He had to be strong! Now of all times! He had to stay strong for Shiro! As long as his dead body wasn't found, there was still a chance he could make it. _Shiro wouldn't get killed so easily! He is fine! He is somewhere out there! I just have to find him!_ His eyes widened. He couldn’t.

_You’re useless._

Without the Garrison officially assigning him to a field mission he couldn't even get near a beach. He was completely powerless. Useless. He couldn't help Shiro.

_Guilt._

Keith wanted to rip it off now. His heart was beating in such a strange way, hindering his breathing. He bit his bottom lip with all his strength trying to relocate the pain. But it wasn't working. His hands started to shake too. Actually, his whole self was shaking.

This wasn’t foreign to Keith. When the whole world becomes so cold and colorless. He had seen it before. Way too many times.

He stared at the ocean. The place where his parents were. The place where Shiro was.

“I can’t do this, Shiro!” the boy’s voice weak and muffled in his own hands, “I never wanted to do this, Shiro! I never asked for this.”

Then, a thought crossed his mind. It wasn't the first time he had thought about it. _Everyone thinks about it, right?_ He looked at the ocean, far away, shining with the sunlight, _After all… Life is so meaningless. There is no point in going on anymore. I should just…_

_Jump._

If he jumped from one of those cliffs, everything would end. The pain would stop. He wouldn't have to deal with Iverson anymore. He would be eternally resting with his father, mother and brother.

He could just _go home._

 _That doesn’t sound so bad._ His heart was racing in his chest. _No._   _I don’t want to die. I’m scared._ He could feel the tears forming in his eyes again, blurring the painful sight of the sea. _But I don’t want to stay here! I’m tired. I’m so tired. There is nothing left here._

He hated the sea more than anything. It was dark, cold, and filled with the screaming voices of everyone he ever cared about. The perfect resting place for him.

“I think I’m losing my mind…” Keith softly murmured as he felt the cold salt water splash against his face. The wind was stronger than usual, making his hair tousled. He didn't even realized when he had left his room, when he had left the Garrison base, when he had shown his ID to the guards saying he was using the day off to go for a walk, when he had walked towards the sea, or when he had stopped right before the cliff’s edge.

He took one step forward leaning to see how high it was. He immediately felt something sink in his stomach. It was high. Really high. Keith swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. On the bottom, the sea crashed violently against the rocks. He would probably die just from the fall. He took a deep breath. Would anyone miss him if he was gone? Would anyone cry for his death. Probably not. Maybe Pidge would make a distressed face.

He had nothing left. No family. No home. Barely any friends. He knew, that all he had to do was jump, and everything would be over. No more endless nights crying. No more envious eyes on him. No more mermaids. No more war. No more of that deathless pain that always lived in his chest. No more nothing. Keith wanted to jump, he really wanted to.

Yet for some reason, he couldn't take another step forward.

Water and salt wetting his face. Was it sea water or his tears? That he didn’t know. Maybe a mix of the two. He looked at the ocean, again.

He hated it.

_Shiro…_

Those dark, cold depths.

_Mom… Dad…_

Filled with the screaming voices of everyone he had ever cared about.

_I’ll see you soon…_

He took a step forward, _I missed you guys so much, I want to go back home now,_ tears streaming down his face.

Another step.

The wind made his hair dance and hit his face.

One more step.

He felt his boats hitting the sandy terrain, some dust rising because of it.

_I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…_

He raised his left foot, walking into nothingness, eyes closed, tears falling, heart racing.

_I’ll be going home soon._

The foot did not find land this time. His whole body losing balance and dropping forward. To the abyss. Keith let out a soft and scared cry as he felt his whole self fall. The harsh air on his face made it hard to breathe. Cold. The water rapidly engulfed him whole and Keith's eyes snapped open.

He survived the fall.

Keith fought his instinct to swim to the surface. He held his own breath and forced himself to swim down. He had to make it deeper, and deeper. So deep that when his instincts forced him to surface he wouldn't be able to make it.

It didn’t take long.

He needed air. He wanted to breathe. His instincts kicked in, making him surface. But he couldn’t. He had sunk too much.

Air.

He needed Air. He wanted to open his mouth to breathe. Part of him was fighting for him not to. But his mouth opened, sea water rushing into his lungs, burning him. He was scared. So scared he had the feeling that his fear was being dragged around the waters.

 _Shiro… Mom… Dad…_ He started to lose consciousness, drowning in his own darkness, _I’m sorry… I love you._

 

* * *

 

Lance let out a long sigh as he sagged deeper into his bed. The door to his room had been locked and he could hear the two guards stationed outside of it. Allura wasn’t fooling around this time, that’s for sure.

He squirmed to the side, moving his tail through the water as his eyes dropped to the panel painted in one of the walls of his room. He heard himself sigh again before looking at the dazzling portrait of the white haired mermaid.

The Goddess.

She was beautiful with her sun kissed skin and purple eyes. Her tail was equally purple but also filled with shades of blue and pink.

She looked a lot like Allura and nothing like him.

Legend says that long ago mermaids lived in constant fear, threatened by the great hazards of the sea. The cold waters and the savage predators made survival barely manageable. Yet, everything changed when a young mermaid came across a precious jewel. A jewel bright like the sun and blue like the ocean, filled with immense power.

The mermaid, with a pure and simple wish, received from the artifact the power to protect her fellow mermaids from the great dangers that the ocean drowned them into. As she earned her powers, the mermaid’s hair turned white and this particular characteristic still lingered in every member of the royal family, along with the amazing powers.

Well, except for Lance.

His hair had been brown since he could remember and amazing magical powers weren’t exactly something he owned either. Well, he could still sing people to their deaths, but then again, so did most mermaids. So, as a matter of fact, Lance, the younger prince of Altea, was nothing more than a complete normal mermaid.

Actually, when Lance was younger he even thought that he was not part of the royal family. If he had been adopted, it would have explained a lot of things. Yet, he had not been adopted and he was simply the first member of the royal family that didn’t have any powers.

But that didn't bother him.

Ok. Now that’s a lie. It did bother him a lot, but he had grown used to it.

The dubious looks of nobles that believed he could have been born from an illegitimate relationship, the undeniable few faith his father had in him, his sister pity look. He was constantly overthrown by all expectations set for him. Allura was smart, beautiful, a great fighter and strategist, a great leader and loved by the people. Everything that he never was or would be.

A groan escaped Lance’s throat.

“If I stay locked in here for another doubosh, I'll go apples and bananas!” He got up carefully swimming closer to the door to make sure none of the guards had heard him. Lance smirked slyly and swam to one of the many windows sealed with bars.

“And here I thought today was going to be my lucky day...” He peered outside just to make sure no one was passing by, and easily removed one of the bars. “Joke’s on me apparently! That beautiful ship filled with foreign treasures, but noooo~” he cleared his voice, “Lance, you must return to the castle, immediately!” He mimicked his sister as best as he could, reproducing her accent perfectly, “Sure, Sis! Just going to hang out in my room for an entire lunar cycle, unable to flirt with the _merladies_ or collect the treasures from that human ship!”

It would be a lie if Lance said he wasn’t thankful and proud of his looks, but if there was something he was grateful for, was how easy sneaking out through a window was thanks to his slim body. He was pretty sure no one in the castle ever dreamed that squirming through the bars was his way of escaping.

Thankfully.

He hurried out and easily placed the bar back in place, carefully swimming away from his room, using the shadows to remain unnoticed and avoiding most of the patrols.

He stopped under the window sill of a large window, taking his time to catch his breath and making sure the patrol was far away, making it impossible for them to spot him.

“I just don't know what to do anymore, Coran,” the soft voice was filled with concern, “He never listens.” Lance immediately recognised the voice.

“Of course he listens, princess.” The voice of the advisor came next.

“He doesn't! He keeps going out to explore those quiznaking human ships when I've told him countless times how dangerous it is!” Lance could perfectly picture Coran’s face when Allura cursed, “He doesn't have any powers, can't make a siren scream and his singing voice will be of no used if something attacks him underwater!”

Lance let out a frail sigh as he mumbled 'I can hear you talking about Lance Mcdisapointment, you know?’

“I just don't know what to do anymore, Coran! We used to be so close, but now it's like a whole ocean just split us apart. After what happened to father and mother,” Allura’s voice threatened to break with every word she uttered, “I would never forgive myself if something were to happen to Lance.”

Lance felt a lump form in his throat. He tried to swallow it, but it was no use.

“I know, princess.” Coran comforted her, “but maybe-” Lance didn't hear anymore. He couldn't. He swam as fast as he dared, trying to avoid whatever answer Coran gave.

He swam away, too overwhelmed to think about what he was doing, the magnificent castle disappearing behind his back. A voice in Lance’s head reminded him of how bad things could get if he was caught sneaking out of the castle, especially after the incident of that morning, but Lance ignored it.

He let some air escape from his mouth, a couple of bubbles immediately surfacing, “Calm down, man… Just get the mirror, hide the mirror and go back into the castle. Easy peasy! No one will ever notice you were gone!” He dived again, increasing his speed.

The waters were really clear today, the sunlight highlighted the vivid shades of the corals and the algae. A shoal of colorful fish swam past him, making the blue tailed mermaid smile, and for a slim moment, forget all the worries that had tormented him.

The sea currents made his hair dance, the sunlight lightened his blue scales making them reflect thousands of different blue shades. A soft smile formed on his lips. “Man, what I’d give to be able to swim away from all that. I’d explore the seven seas, I’d see every shipwreck out there,” he let out a small giggle, “Maybe I could convince Hunk to come with me. He sure is scared of everything but-” an enormous sound resonated through the waters, making him jerk and squeal his lungs out. “What- WHat was that?” he looked around worried that it could be a shark, or a squid or _worse_.

Lance calmed himself as he realized there was nothing around. “Did I imagined it? Nope. nonono! I definitely heard that!” he hesitated for a moment, “Oh man, I’m definitely getting grounded for a lot more than a lunar cycle!” But he dashed towards the sound anyway, looking around trying to spot what could have made it. He rapidly noticed where it had come from. He was now certain that something had been thrown down the cliffs into the ocean, “Lucky!” he smiled, “Maybe I’ll get my hands on some really precious human treasures,” he giggled again dashing even faster towards the cliffs trying to find what had fallen.

He froze.

There was no doubt now what had fallen down from land. “Could it be?” he let out a breath he hadn’t realize he was holding, “It has to be,” his blue eyes wandered. From the distance, it kinda looked like a mermaid but the place where the tail should be was split into two. “It’s definitely a human.”

Lance gulped. He had never ever seen a human before, sure he heard about them all the time. He knew everything he needed to know about humans. They were dangerous and ambitious, willing to kill anything that stood in their paths. Lance didn’t like humans, not one bit, yet curiosity always managed to get the best of him.

He carefully approached the creature, sneakily swimming towards the shade. Some rocks from the cliffs gave him a perfect hiding spot, allowing Lance to watch from the shadows. The human was trying to swim to the surface, but he had sunk too deep to reach the top.

Drowning had always been a concept Lance had never completely understood. He knew it was what happened to humans when they couldn't surface to breathe the air, but it didn't sound right to him. Only now he was starting to understand it.

“Looks... painful,” he murmured to himself, his voice almost cracking as the human desperately grabbed his own neck. He wondered how Allura could manage to see that on a daily basis. A thought pricked in his mind, _If I do join the army,_ his heart skipped a bit, _I’ll have to see that again and again. I might have to drag humans to the bottom myself._ He instantly looked back at the human, wondering if he was still alive, his heart raced in his chest when he saw the creature motionless.

He panicked, rushing to the human, “Hey? Are you alive?!” Nothing. “Answer me, come on!” he grabbed him by the waist, sprinting to the surface. The human was numb, his body cold and more lifeless by the second. Lance was scared. Death was impartial to everyone and anyone after all.

The young mermaid cursed himself for not being able to let go of the human. He carefully swam to his secret beach, a place hidden in the cliffs that could only be seen from the sea, so humans were never there, and, as he reached the surface he felt the air enter his lungs. That was a sensation he could never get used to. Even with deep breaths it never seemed to be enough, completely different from underwater, where ‘breathing’ was natural and easier.

He pulled the human from the cold water laying him on the white sand. Only now Lance had stopped to look at him. He was wearing _clothes_. Lance didn’t quite understand why humans liked to wear them so much tho. Maybe it was a human thing.

He had porcelain skin almost as white as the sand beneath them. Lance hesitated, his heart pounding in his head, as he slowly gazed at the human’s face, which apparently was an enormous black tuft. _Weird_ , he thought, raising his left eyebrow, _I thought they had normal faces… Ugly, but normal faces_ , with a lingering movement he approached the pale creature, _It’s dead, isn't it? What do I do? WHat can I do?_ His mind was racing, _It’s not my fault he died._

“This is no big deal! Just hanging out with a dead human!” Lance let out a muffled high pitched scream when the human coughed. _Oh! Right! Why didn’t I thought of that!_ He cautiously approached the human, and using his hand, he made some pressure in the place where the human’s lungs should be.

 _It’s bold and muscular, kinda lik-,_ the human coughed again, this time a bigger amount of water left his lungs. Lance didn't hide this time, he only jerked away a bit but remained next to the human. _Oh man, what the quiznak am I doing,_ he took a deep breath and forced himself to look at the pale being.

The human looked rather peaceful, Lance could see he was breathing again, his chest rising methodically, even tho he was still unconscious. His face was laying on the side now, and the weird tuft had moved slightly. _Wait! Don’t tell me! That’s his hair?!_ He gazed at it again, skeptically.

“Humans are so,” he hesitated, dragging the sound as he looked for a word, “strange.” He swallowed hard the lump in his throat at the thought that had swum in his mind. Then he slowly reached closer, his hands carefully finding their way towards the human’s face. Lance aimed for the black hair strands, thoroughly diverting them away to the sides.

 _Wow…_ the mermaid felt his own mouth drop as he admired the human, _I thought they were ugly! What kind of weird taste does Coran have to call them ugly!_

The human moved again, his head returned to its original position. Lance wasn't even getting scared at the sudden movements from the creature, anymore. He raised a brow as he noticed how distressed the human looked.

“It’s-It’s almost,” the blue tailed mermaid mindfully observed the human’s face shifting painfully, “It’s like he is having a bad dream.” His eyes rolled to the side as if trying to look for an answer, “Could it be… that humans have nightmares too?”

Lance didn't quite understand why, but he had begun humming. It was something he didn’t do often, but for some reason, he thought it could help. It started as quick random sounds, here and there, but slowly a sweet melody started to hover in the air. The human relaxed, his breathing stabilizing almost immediately.

Lance couldn’t stop himself from smiling. Humans didn’t look so scary like that. With that beautiful porcelain skin contrasting with the darkness of the hair. Lips somewhat parted and only now the brown haired mermaid noticed how his eyelashes seemed longer than usual. Maybe it was a human thing. Who knows.

“Shiro…” The human murmured, breath touching Lance’s face and his eyes painfully opening, startling Lance that immediately dashed away back to the water. “Huh?” A river of coughs ran down his throat almost stopping him from breathing. His gullet was burning making it harder to breathe as the coughing turned to be an unpleasant routine. “Wh-” His whole throat burned as he tried to speak, “What was that?” he forced the words out looking around.

So Lance may or may not have screamed his lungs out when the human’s eyes suddenly snapped open back there. And now, he was obviously not scared and so not trying to hide himself behind a giant boulder. He observed as the human disorientedly tried to stand and walk.

“I’m still alive?” he asked not looking very pleased, “Why? How?” another cough interrupted him as he tried to figure out what had happened.

_Maybe he didn’t saw me… I’ll just dive back to the depths and pretend this never ever happened! No harm done!_

“Who’s there?” the human asked coughing as Lance mentally screamed, “I saw you! Whoever _you_ are! Come out!” he coughed again, this time managing to spill some sea water. Lance observed from the shadows as the human seemed to cough his lungs out, leaning forward while breathing slowly. As the human straighten up, Lance saw a glimpse of purple in the other boy’s eyes. He had never seen iris like that before. The most similar ones he could think off were Allura’s with the sweet pink contrasting against her sapphire iris. But they were still nothing alike.

“Who,” Keith's eyes widened, he took a couple of steps back, almost losing his footing as he noticed a blue tail, “Merm-Mermaid?”

Gills or Tail, his mind immediately shifted. Keith hastily looked around, he didn’t have his knife with him so he had to make do. He was still the best of his class! He could take down a mermaid! Even if he was alone and completely defenseless against a monster! He could do it!

_Patience, Yields, Focus._

He tried to calm himself down, refusing to falter. Keith's eyes analysed his surroundings, looking for some sort of weapon, without ever turning his back on the sea monster.

 _Quiznak, he saw me, didn’t he!?_ Lance immediately prepared to dive into the depth before it was too late. But he couldn’t, his blue eyes widening as he saw what the human was holding, pointing it at his gills.

“You’re going to kill me with a stick?” he asked perplexed before bursting into laughter.

“Ei! There’s only small rocks and weak shells around here,” Keith argued, “It’s not like- YOU CAN SPEAK?” he stated eloquently.

Lance tried to hold his laughter, still half hiding behind his trustworthy bolder, “No… We can’t! We actually sing but we can’t talk! Sure, that makes sense!” he laughed again when he saw how intrigued the human looked, “Man, humans are so weird!”

Keith looked at him, confused, his heart racing in his head. _Tail. Gills._ He took a deep breath, “Just stay back!” he commanded.

“Jeez… You’re grateful!” Lance protested, “No need to thank me! I just saved your quiznaking life! No big deal! I wasn’t expecting at least a _thank you_ anyways...” he turned around mumbling to himself, “Humans sure are ungrateful beasts! Coran was right!”

Keith just stared at the mermaid, suspicion written all over his face, but he said nothing, keeping the frail stick pointed at Lance. An awkward silence slowly surrounding the two of them.

Lance sighed, _I should just go and pretend this never happened,_ he kicked the water, preparing the dive.

“Wait!” Lance stopped and looked at the human. He seemed as surprised and nervous as him.

“What?” The mermaid asked arching a brow.

“Wh,” he hesitated, probably asking himself why he was talking with a mermaid, “Why did you… save me?”

“I don't know! Just felt like it!” his voice leaving slightly harsher than he intended it to, “Why did you jump?!”

“Just felt like it!” The human uttered, clearly not satisfied with Lance’s reply.

“You sure you’re not a sea creature? Cuz you’re _salty as quiznak_!”

“What’s a _quiznak_?”

“What with that hair?”

“What’s with those ears!?”

“My ears are just fine! They heard everything you said!”

“Argg…” Keith groaned, “Just answer the goddamn question! Why did you save me?!” he snapped raising his arm to the sides, “Why would a mermaid save a human! You drown and kill everyone! Take down our sailing boats! Destroy our ships!”

“And you humans kill us too! The sea is not yours so why do you keep invading our home! You destroy it! And pollute it! And take away our quintessence! And-”

“Quint-what now?”

“You’re all just ungrateful beasts!” Lance frowned.

Keith sighed, “You expect me to thank an enemy for sparing my life?” Keith frowned back at the mermaid.

“I should have let you drown!” Lance stated before kicking the water and efficiently diving to the depths, mumbling “Ungrateful Humans!” as he dived.

Keith didn’t understand.

How could he? Mermaids had taken his parents away from him. They’d taken Shiro too. And now they’d taken away his chance to end it all.

_Why?_

Keith remembered has he jumped from the cliff. How the water engulfed him, dragging him to those dark, cold depths. He remembered how scared he was as he drowned in a mix of his own emotions, only the thought of returning home guiding him. He remembered the figure that approached him. A mermaid. He wasn’t sure if it was just a delusion or if it was real. What he knew was that he was done for. No way to escape.

His body went limb. His eyes too heavy. Death was only just a breath away.

But he was saved instead. And by a mermaid of all creatures. How could he possibly believe that?

There was something fishy about it. Maybe the mermaid was trying to use him. Yeah. That had to be it. Trying to win his trust and make Keith comfortable just to attack him and destroy him from the core, like a mermaid was believed to do.

Too bad he didn't fall for his 'kindness’.

Keith frowned, “How do I get out of here?” He looked around. The cliffs hang high above him, circling the beach where he had awoken. It was impressive actually. Keith had never seen anything like that. He was sure that it was impossible from the cliffs to see the small beach.

Which was a good thing.

Keith didn't even want to imagine the amount of trouble he would get himself into if he was found on the beach.

He looked at the cliffs again.

Those were really high. Maybe being found by the garrison wouldn't be that bad compared to dying from starvation on that beach, or worst. If that mermaid brought his friends, Keith would be done for.

He gathered himself up, looking around for a way to escape. No way he was going to be mermaid dinner.

The cliffs weren't just too high to climb, they also seemed unstable. He was completely fucked.

His eyes dilated when he saw a slim gap in between the rocks.

With a lot of time on his hands, Keith approached the cliff and squirmed through the rocks.

It was like a cave inside the rocks. He could hear the sound of water running somewhere, echoing through the rocks. The place was lightened by the frail rays of the sun that peered through the gaps in the rocks from above.

Keith followed a track that seemed to go up, carefully picking the boulders where he stepped. A weak smile formed on his lips when he saw a way out of the cavern.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh God! Thank you so much for all the lovely kudos, bookmarks and subscriptions! <3  
> Hope you like the new update! Have a nice day! <3


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a while since Keith had been able to take Shiro and the whole Kerberos mission incident out of his mind.

He had always longed to be able to drift away from all the thoughts that kept haunting him. But he never expected it would come at the price of a much more surreal question.

_Why would a mermaid save him?_

It had to have a motive, right.

Mermaids were cruel creatures that feed on human flesh so they would never let an opportunity to hunt down a human pass.

It had to be the 57th time the thought ran through his mind. Keith let out an annoyed groan when he realised he was at it again.

Thinking about _it_ again.

But that came to no surprise. It wasn't exactly simple to stop thinking about the whole incident when the school work you have to do keeps constantly reminding you of it.

Mermaids this, mermaids that. Maybe spending the whole Saturday working on his assignments wasn't such a good idea.

He sighed again, letting his head fall on the desk near his bed.

“Keith! Are you even listening to what I’m saying?” Pidge asked him, efficiently dragging him away from deep thought.

“I’m sorry, Pidge. What-”

“I was trying to tell you about the field mission, _for the third time!_  But you clearly have your mind on something else!”

“Aren’t you exaggerating a bit, Pidge.” Keith sighed before looking away, “But, I guess I do have a lot in my mind.” he admitted in a soft whisper.

“Are you ok?” The tiny human asked, “You don’t look that good. I’m sorry for keep on bringing up what happened at the field mission. I guess it wasn’t very considerate of me.” Keith sighed.

“Don’t worry. It doesn’t have to do with that.”

“You looked like you’d seen a ghost yesterday,” Pidge insisted, “Did something happen? Did Iverson said anything else to you?”

“No, he didn't! I haven’t seen him since yesterday morning,” he offered, “I’m fine. I’m just tired.” His brown haired friend didn't seem satisfied with the reply, “I also didn't get much sleep last night, so with everything adding up…”

“Keith… You're actually making me worry now. Are you sure nothing happened?” Keith considered explaining to Pidge what was in his mind, “You know you can trust me, right? We’re like partners now!”

Two purple eyes started towards Pidge.

Keith hesitated. Keith wanted nothing more than tell his roommate everything that had happened.

Maybe telling Pidge would help him clear his mind, and maybe even help figure out the mermaid’s intentions. Pidge was extremely smart, if that brain couldn't understand what was going on, then probably no one else could.

As the words started to form in his mind, Keith realised how stupid it was. _I jumped off a cliff and was saved by a mermaid._ Sure. That made sense.

He could almost picture Pidge’s laugh followed by the obvious reply, “Good one, Keith! I almost forgot you could crack jokes!”

There was no way he could explain that, 1 - he had pretty much committed suicide, 2 - he had been rescued by a mermaid that didn't even try to harm him. At all.

The black haired teen smiled. “I’m sorry, Pidge. I guess I’m just tired…”

Pidge didn’t seem very convinced but didn’t insist either.

Keith knew that this had probably been the best course of action. Not that he didn’t trust his roommate enough. Pidge would probably listen to everything he had to say, declare he had gone nuts, probably take him to the infirmary and then go back to the computer.

But Keith was in no place to judge.

He himself, that had experienced everything, was having trouble believing it. The more someone that was just told the story. Thinking Keith had gone insane was actually something pretty considerative to do. There was no way Pidge would believe him. Worst, having to mention the whole jumping off a cliff part beforehand, Pidge might even inform the garrison, what would result in Keith being reevaluated. And if he was reported to be mentally unstable, there was no way they would let him stay.

And that was like taking a step away from where Shiro was. He couldn't let that happen.

Keith forced a smile when he realised Pidge wasn’t satisfied with his answer, trying to look as ok as he could, “I was a bit down yesterday,” he admitted, “With everything happening… You know… I didn't get much sleep either. But don't worry, really. It's no big deal.”

Pidge jumped from the bowling, “If you say so. Just know that if you need anything you can count on me, Keith!”

“Yeah… I know. Thanks, Pidge.”

“I'm going to the cafeteria to grab something to eat? Want to join me?”

“I want to finish this up first!” Keith pointed at the assignment with his pencil, “I'll catch up with you later!”

“Your loss!”

Keith smirked at his friend as Pidge closed the door of their dorm. He took a deep breath and looked at the question again, trying to concentrate on his homework.

His mind drifted. Intense blue eyes, staring at him as he drowned. Keith shook his head like the movement could force his mind out of those thoughts. He picked up his notebook and looked at his notes. Again. Brown hair and those sharp fangs that could probably shred him to pieces.

Keith groaned forcing himself to read his notes again from where he had started. He refused to lose focus, forcing himself to pay extra attention to the words. His eyes stopped.

 

_Of all the reports and testimonies of soldiers and civilians, it is known that mermaids will always go for the kill. Reports also state that these sea monsters might kill only for entertainment, drowning humans without necessarily wanting to feed on their flesh._

 

Keith blinked. His purple eyes traced the sentences back to the beginning and read them again. And again. And one more time.

 _If mermaids always go for the kill_ , he wondered, _then why didn't it killed me._

Keith was sure there had to be a very simple explanation. Either that or he was going insane. He gave it some thought, but couldn't really come up with anything. Maybe he was going insane.

 _Mermaids are smart and cunning_ , he thought while he played with his pencil, _Maybe it was trying to deceive me. It saved me so I felt in depth and tried to repay. Not that I could do much… Unless,_ he let out a small breath, _That thing was probably after information._

The more Keith thought about it, the more sense it made to him. He clenched his fingers, annoyed that one of those monsters had tried to make him betray humanity, his beliefs and even Shiro. He wanted revenge. Make that thing get some of his own medicine.

But he knew he couldn't.

He couldn't even get close to a beach to look for Shiro the more go on a crusade to regain his honor.

Keith stopped, his eyes widened when he realised. The whole night and day had been so frustrated, he didn't even think about it.

 _This changes everything_ , his eyes shined like the sun, _I found an access to a beach. Inside a cavern! Maybe there are more._ His heart skipped a beat as he realised, _I can finally look for Shiro._

He dropped his pencil on the table, grabbing his coat and his knife before leaving.

 

* * *

 

Keith made his way back to the narrow gap in the rocks that led to the cave. He didn't bother showing off his ID when he left the garrison facility, deciding it would be for the better just to sneak out.

It’s not like he was forbidden from leaving the facility. Students could get in and out when they wanted, as long as they didn't skip class. Yet, Keith thought it would be better to avoid having all his smalls trips registered in the main computer. Since Iverson seemed to be keeping an eye on him, it was better to make them believe he was still inside than have them question why he was constantly leaving.

Because, yes. Keith intended to explore every tiny bit that cavern gave him access to. Given its size it could even be linked to other beaches. Beaches that could hold clues to what had happened to Shiro. Or even to Shiro himself.

The more Keith wanted to hope for the best, he couldn't bring himself to think too positively. He knew he would have to keep searching and searching. He knew it would take time. And the best way to not be questioned as to why he was constantly heading out was if the garrison didn't knew he was leaving.

“Alright,” Keith took a small notebook and a pen from one of his pockets. He leaned into one of the boulders inside the cave, getting some support as he drew a simple sketch of the path he had wandered across, “If this thing is as big as I think, better map it before I lose track of where I’m going.”

He kept on walking and mapping the place, taking some notes as he went. He also left some markings on the rocks signaling them on his map. He let out a small sigh, his eyes trailing the narrow tunnels.

The place was dark and silent, filled only with the soft echo of water running. A cold chill traveled across his back, as Keith sank deeper and deeper into the cave. He couldn't even help it when his mind slowly started to drift since his thoughts were pretty much the only thing he heard there.

 

_Blinded by tears, Keith sprinted towards the sea. His left hand was clenched into a fist and in his right hand was a small blade. His mind burned every time he remembered the news that never left him alone. The new that had left him alone._

_His mother and father were gone. Taken away by the sea and the creatures that lived there. A mixed of feelings swirled in Keith’s heart every time the thought crossed his mind. To a point where he had grown used to it._

_Keith’s house was near a cliff and, from his room, he could see the sea. Both his mother and father had told him endless stories about it, but he always wondered what would be like to go to a beach. What the water would feel like. If the water was as salty as they said it was. If the sun felt any different or if the breeze was softer. He wished the war was over so he could go to a beach and unveil its secrets._

_No child deserves to have their biggest dream turned into a nightmare._

_From day to night, Keith lost everything. His parents. His house. His friends._

_The sea took it all away from him, leaving the purple eyed boy alone, hating the infinite body of salt water that spread across the horizon._

_He had been taken to an orphanage for the ages that followed. And even tho he might have made a couple of friends, it never felt alright to call that place home._

_Nor did he ever felt comfortable addressing anyone as his family._

_Revenge._

_The thought was always with him, lingering on his mind. A darkness he could never light._

_He wanted to dry the sea. Erase it to oblivion. Take mermaid’s home away from them. Just like they had done to him._

_Yet the only salt water he had ever felt was the tears that constantly lived in the corners of his eyes._

_His blurred vision made him crash into someone. Keith would have apologized, but today wasn’t a good day to stop in his tracks. He had no time to lose. He had to be quick before someone got him._

_Yet Keith was forced to stop when his arm was grabbed by a man, making him stop and wander back._

_“What!?” he barked. Keith immediately regretted his harsh tone when he came across the man’s soft expression._

_“Where are you going?” he asked softly, ignoring Keith’s tone, “There’s nothing in that direction.”_

_Keith furrowed his brows looking at the taller figure, “Let go of me!” the boy kicked the air around him._

_“Hey come on!”  His eyes were soft even if the grip on Keith’s arm remained as tight as ever, “What is a little kid doing here all by himself?”_

_Keith pouted, avoiding eye contact, “Nothing… I’m hmm just…”_

_The grey eyes sank into him, “I wouldn't do that.” He said as if he could read Keith's mind._

_“Oh yeah?! What would you know?” Keith stormed back, fighting the hold on his arm, “They took everything I had! I'm just going to pay them in the same coin!”_

_The man gave him a sad knowing smile, that made him look younger, “Oh I would know!” he replied, eyes softly drifting to his right arm. Keith flinched. Only now the boy noticed the prosthetic arm. He looked at the grey eyes hesitantly, “I know exactly how you feel. But believe me when I tell you that storming out into a beach isn’t going to solve anything. On the contrary, you might end up losing something that you’d never realised you had before.”_

_Keith gave up, tears forming in his eyes as soon as he stopped fighting the grip the other had on him, “Then what should I do? What can I do?”_

_The man smiled, “You could start by taking better care of yourself.” He offered his human hand simpaticaly, “I’m Shiro.”_

_“Keith.”_

_Shiro smiled, hugging the 5-year-old younger boy in is arms, “Where are you’re parents?”_

_Keith shook his head sadly and Shiro immediately knew. He didnt utter a word for a long time, only conforting the younger boy._

_“Come with me,” he offered when Keith’s hiccups had stopped, “and I might be able to help you…”_

 

Keith stopped walking, shaking the thoughts away as he inhaled the sea breeze slowly. For some reason he had walked all the way to _that place_. The place where he had woken up yesterday, after he jumped as lost consciousness. He took a deep breath, scanning the area silently.

“What am I doing here…” Keith calmly protested. His eyes widened as he heard a subtle scream followed by a couple of crashing sounds that finalized with a splash of water. He blinked.

 _Could it be…_ Keith hurried and contoured the giant boulder in a stealthy movement. The black haired teen almost gasped at the sight.

A mermaid. And not just any mermaid. The mermaid.

Keith stumbled, releasing a breath he didn’t realized he was holding. It was a blue tailed mermaid, with chocolate skin and brown hair. The blue scales it had on the shoulders, back and part of the arms, reflected beautiful shades of the ocean’s glow. Keith trailed the fin that descended from his back to most of his tail, or the drop that fell from his hair flowing shyly along his face.

He also noticed the weird triangle like symbols under his stunning blue eyes, the tattoo like pattern on his shoulder and part of the arm or the weird pendant that slided along his chest.

“What?” Lance complained, startling Keith from his trance. He hadn’t even realised when he’d started staring. “You better be here to apologize!” the mermaid hinted.

“What?” Keith protested intrigued. Like hell he would apologize to a mermaid. Not after everything they had done to him.

They had killed his parents leaving him alone in the world for ages.  Forced to learn how to survive on his own. And when everything started to change for the better. When he finally found someone he cared about and could call family, they took him away. Once more.

But before he could make his point obvious to the sea monster, an idea crossed his mind.

If he could just get that mermaid’s attention, and deceive it into telling him information. Maybe he could get his revenge. Maybe he could learn their weakness. Or more.

 _Patience, Yields, Focus,_ Keith forced to get his temper under control. _If this thing wants an apology so badly, why not play along._ The profits he could win from this would be a lot better than the bit of pride he felt himself losing.

“Actually, Yeah!” Keith tried to look as apologetic as he could, “I’m sorry for yesterday,” he forced the words out. The mermaid looked at him intrigued, raising a brow as if implying that Keith needed to try harder if he was trying to apologize. Keith sighed, “Thank you, for saving my life!” he offered.

The sea monster gave him a satisfied grin. Oh what Keith wouldn't do to wipe that smirk off his face. _Patience, Yields, Focus..._

“Well, I guess I could forgive you. Even if you _are_ an ungrateful human.”

Keith had to gather all his strength to not punch that mermaid to hell.

Lance looked at the human curiously. He had not expected to see him again, nor the apology. He was actually rather content and already glad he had left Altea this morning. He looked at the human's hair, noticing how different it looked when it was dry. The contrast of the pale skin with the black hair was actually quite beautiful, in Lance’s opinion.

When he caught the two purple eyes staring at him, he panicked, caught by surprise he said the first thing that came to his mind, “So… you come here often?”

He saw the human’s face twist and his lips muter a small, 'what?’

Lance would give anything to drown now. He slowly sank into the water, avoiding all kind of eye contact with the human. Ohh his years for flirting with mermaid didn't help him in this one.

Keith stared at the blue tailed mermaid confused, “What did it just?”

“Ok. Let's start this again!” Lance rose from the waters enough for his shoulders to show up, “Hi! My name is Lance!”

When he looked at the human, he found him even more confused than before. He was opening and closing his mouth like a fish.

“What? You don't have a name or something? Maybe humans don't have names.”

“No! It’s a hm, Keith.”

“Keaf!” Lance repeated smiling.

“Actually it’s Keith!” The human emphasised the part that Lance had mispronounced.

“Keef…” Lance mimicked, his fangs adorably showing up.

“Keeeith!”

Lance looked at him slightly annoyed, “Why are human names so hard to say?!”

“It's not that hard! Why are you named after a weapon!”

Keith stopped at the sound of his own words. _You_. Had he just talked to that monster like he was a human.

He peered a look at the mermaid, that was practicing his name, fangs showing up as he repeated, “Keif… Keeiff…”

Keith didn't correct him anymore, admiring how the mermaid didn't gave up on trying to get the name right. He noticed how much softer the blue eyes looked and how their colour matched perfectly the marks under his eyes. The blue scales only shined brighter with the sunlight, creating a beautiful contrast against the dark skin.

“You never saw a mermaid before?”

Keith looked at the blue eyes almost instantly when he heard the question, “No, I haven't,” he admitted without thinking, regretting it immediately. He was suppose to be learning info, not giving it away.

Lance smirked, “Oh aren't you lucky! To be gifted with the sight of my beauty!” he exclaimed dramatically as Keith stared at him with a deadpan look, “Not everyone is lucky enough to meet the Prince of Altea!” he made a pose to show his grasciocity.

“What's Altea?”

“Really?” Lance didn't seem content with the human's reaction. His face softened for a bit, irritation long forgotten, “Altea is my homeland!” he explained as the human looked at him with a mixture of surprise and awe, “It’s a beautiful underwater city where we live!”

Keith’s mouth was almost hanging open, _An underwater city?_

He quietly heard the mermaid ramble, slowly realising something that had never crossed his mind.

The possibility of mermaids having an organized society.

He had never seen anything that denied the existence of a society of mermaids underwater, but truth was most of his text books seemed to imply that mermaids were lone creatures.

This could change everything.

“Can I ask you something?” Lance gave him a small smile as he leaned into a rock. Keith took a step back.

_I knew it. It was after information after all._

“Can you read?”

“What?”

“I said _can you read!_ ” Lance repeated.

“No! I got what you said, I just? Why would you? What?”

“Hmm…” Lance rested his chin in his hand, looking a bit disappointed, “Maybe not all humans learn how to read. I shouldn't have assumed that their education system was as advanced as ours…”

“What the- what have you just?”

“I got my hopes up for nothing too…”

“I’m trying to say that I, of course, know how to read!” Keith finally managed to verbalized. It took only a second for the mermaid’s smile to shine brighter than the sun itself.

“Really?” his eyes lit up, “Could you like teach me? I’ve been trying to learn on my own since mermaids only learn Altean. Well we do learn how to speak the human language too, it was something very important decafebes ago, before the war, but now not really. I have a couple of old papers with the translation, but I still don't know the meaning of so many words and-”

“I get it!” Keith interrupted.

“Can you teach me, please? I’ll get you something in return, of course! Anything you want!”

Keith looked away, _I don't want anything else as long as I could find Shiro._ He stopped, his own words repeating in his mind, _If the mermaids do have an organised society, then,_

“Do you take prisoners?” he asked without thinking. Lance looked at him confused but soon realised what he meant.

“Ohh,” the sound escaped from Lance’s lips, “you hmmm, looking for someone?”

“It’s my br-” Keith stopped. Eyes widening misbelieve as he almost told the mermaid about Shiro. So easily. “I have to go!” Lance face twisted, “I’ll teach you how to read and I do want something in return! I’ll just take a while to think about it!”

“Really? Oh goddess YES! Meet me here tomorrow?”

Keith nodded, easily leaving from the beach with ease. Lance never stopped looking at him as he walked away, smiling brightly and doing a small dance to celebrate as soon as Keith left.

 

* * *

 

The black hair boy sprinted inside the facility, hoping to reach his shared room with Pidge as fast as he could. He couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation he had with that mermaid for some reason. Mermaids having an organized society was something beyond his imagination. Nothing denied it. But it was never proven, and Keith was sure not many people had even given much thought about it.

Keith walked inside his shared dorm, dropping his jacket on the bed.

“Thought you had been eaten by a mermaid!” Pidge commented not even bothering to look away from the computer, “Haven’t seen you in hours!”

“Oh yeah!” Keith trailed off, “I really needed to go take a walk! I should have asked you if you wanted to come!”

“Meh. Not really.” Keith smirked already expecting that answer, “Nature is not my thing.”

Keith sat in one of the unoccupied chairs in the room, “I’ve been meaning to ask you something. It's been on my mind for a while,” he lied, “but never really had a chance to ask your opinion on it.”

“Fire away…”

“I've been thinking…”

“Oh~ That can't be good” Pidge peered at him slyly  smilling.

“Do you think it is possible for mermaids to have an organized society like ours?”

Pidge looked at him furrowing the light brown eyebrows.

“Yeah… That was stupid…”

“No! It's not!” The circular glassed shined, “I’m just surprised you thought of that before _I_ did! It actually makes a lot of sense. I've read a couple of logs from previous battles, and even tho none of our professors ever mention anything about it, in my opinion, it does look like mermaids have a pretty organized battle methods.”

“Then, you think it's possible?”

“Definitely.” Pidge looked extremely excited, storming into her theory like her life depended on it, “Think of it like a beehive. They’d have a ruler, and specialized mermaids just to gather food for all of them, and then the fighters. Those would be like an army to protect their society.”

“Like a beehive, hum?” Pidge looked enthusiastic, “Do you think… it is possible to end the war if you kill the queen?”

“I-I dont know… but,” Keith already knew what she was trying to say.

_That would change everything._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading I hope you guys enjoyed this. Also thank you for all the kudos, comments, bookmarks and subscriptions. You guys are awesome.  
>    
>  Wondering if yall seen season 3? Gotta say I loved it so much and I can't wait to get a decent internet connection so I can rewatch it and analyse is more decently.  
>    
>  Have a nice day!


	4. Chapter 4

Lance took a deep breath, letting the familiar scent of the sea overflow him. For some reason, he could never get tired of the surface. He forced his arms down, making the water near them flow, as he swam backward. Starting at the infinite blue sky.

Everything was so unique and he loved it.

He loved every tiny bit of it.

The soft wind playing with his hair. The warm sun on his skin. The careful cradle of the waves.

He adored how the water on the surface was slightly warmer and every time he dived he could feel the cold water surround him. The soft chill that went down his spine every time he submerged. So refreshing. He liked to swim close to the surface, the crystalline waters shining with the shy rays of sun that sank in it.

It was beautiful and it felt safe. It felt like home.

And Lance loved everything about it.

Probably even more than exploring sunken ships, ancient ruins or reading human books.

For years and years, he had blamed the war for barricading him from soaring to the surface. But Lance knew better now.

He was a prince and he had responsibilities to attend to. He knew that even if the war ended he would still be a prince and would probably have to marry the daughter of some noble and stay in Altea for the rest of his life.

Maybe that inevitable fate was one of the main reasons why Lance sneaked out of the castle so much. He knew all his adventures would be short lived, and he wanted to enjoy them to the maximum while he could.

Lance spotted the familiar yet still indecipherable haircut that could only belong to Keith. He dived, a smile cracking on his lips, forcing Lance to use all his strength just to hide it. He was glad to finally be able to learn more of the human language. This whole thing sounded so impossible, that the young prince was sure he would wake up from a dream very soon. Lance rose up to the surface right in front of Keith, startling him. He saw as Keith’s hand instantly reached for the blade he had in his belt.

However, Keith didn’t unsheathe it.

Lance took that as a good sign. “Sorry if I surprised you!” Lance stared at the alluring violet eyes.

“It's fine!” he said, “You didn't surprise me.”

Lance arched a brow, pretty sure of the reaction he had gotten out of Keith. But he said nothing.

“So… hm…” the black haired teen sat down on the sand, not too close to Lance, but also not too far, “You still up to learn how to read?”

“Oh yeah! I was born ready!” Lance did a quick dance with his tail that Keith could barely see.

“Ok… I guess we should start with the alphabet.”

Lance's eyes opened in surprise. He saw as the human sketched some letters on the sand near him.

“Hey hey hey! Hold your gazurgas, Keif!”

“It’s _Keith_!” But Lance didn't bother paying attention to him.

“I already know that!” Lance commented while staring at the 5 vowels offended.

“The rest too?”

“Of course!” Lance crossed his arms, pouting.

Keith sighed and wrote a sentence on the sand, wondering how much the mermaid really knew, “What about that?  Can you read it?”

Two blue eyes looked at it, “Simple! _I am an idiot_!” he proudly read it, without giving it much thought until he heard Keith laugh, “Hey! You did that on purpose!” Lance protested offended, immediately turning around, more to hide his burning cheeks than anything else. Keith had completely caught him by surprise with a way too adorable laugh, that should've been illegal.

“You can read just fine." Lance turned back around and found the human wiping his eyes, "What do you even asked my help for?”

Turns out Lance didn't need someone to teach him how to read. He needed a _dictionary_.

Still, Keith was able to get some good laughs with the stupid questions he got asked. Yet Keith knew why Lance had trouble understanding them. Most of the words were directly connected with land or were very particularly related to mankind. In the midst of their conversation, the mermaid also ended up asking a couple of innocent questions about humans and their society in general. And the more he asked the more Keith realised that Lance's home land should be pretty evolved. Impressive that no human had ever picked on that.

Actually, it was remarkable that no one ever noticed it.

At some point, Keith himself was pretty caught up in Lance’s weird Altean words. He asked the meaning of a couple of them, but most of the times he only got more confused. In the end, he resigned himself to his fate, and gave up on trying to learn the mystrious language.

“Ohh, I have another question!” Lance rose his hand, drawing Keith's attention, “How is your name written?”

Keith looked at the mermaid right in front of him for a couple of seconds, then picked the stick he had been using to write and softly carved his name into the sand.

“Keith…”

The black haired boy smiled content that his name had been said right for once. Then he wrote Lance’s name of the sand.

“Lance…” The mermaid read it instantly only later realising it was his own name, “Oh man! That looks so different from Altean!” He swam closer and Keith reluctantly pushed further back, maintaining the distance between them. Lance peered at him before grabbing the stick and scribbling something on the sand, ignoring how Keith's hand was so close to his knife once more.

“My calligraphy is pretty bad too…” he admitted. The human stared at it, completely petrified by the bizarre, yet drawing symbols.

“Altean seems complicated…” he said, deciding to settle down on a rock, “That looks more like abstract art than a word to me.”

“My name it's actually written with most of the simpler characters!” 

Lance raised his left brow observing as Keith’s hand remained incredibly close to his weird human blade, “You planning to kill me with that?”

Keith looked up from the rock where he was sitting, “Hmm… No?” he replied, “I’m not planning on using it unless you attack me!”

The explanation made Lance let out a sarcastic chuckle, “Oh yeah! If I wanted to kill you I could have already done that!” he returned almost proudly if it wasn't for the soft sadness in his tone that Keith pretended not to notice, “Besides, it would be stupid for _me_ to attack _you._ Before I could sing you to a trans you would have already killed me!”

“Don’t you make a fool of me!” the tone came out harsher than Keith expected, “I’m fully aware of the extent of mermaid’s abilities! I refuse to let my guard down!”

“Oh yeah? But I don't have white hair!”

“White hair? What does that have to do with it?”

Lance eyed him perplexed. His voice'aggression turned to hesitation, “You really don't know?” Keith pouted looking at the mermaid straight in the eyes, “Oh I can't believe you're gonna make me explain that…”

Lance sighed, “So… hmm… basically, only mermaids with white hair can use altean magic.”

Keith looked at the mermaid, eyes wide open in surprise. He blinked, and still suspicious asked, “What about a siren scream?”

“Can’t make those either…” Lance explained looking away.

“I thought all mermaids could do that..." Keith mumbled. But _it made_ sense. Mermaids definitely had an organized society, so it was only natural for them to pick their best warriors to face humans. That meant sending out mermaids that could make siren screams or use what apparently was called 'altean magic'. Keith sighed, "So you can only sing?”

“Pretty much…” Lance admitted slyly. Yet it didn't take long for his tone to change, “But I’ve been trained in the art of _clovenheifer_ combat! Faster than an angry klanmüirl or mad as a wet chüper. I’ll blow anything that attacks me straight to Wozblay! I'll defeat any and every foe!” he made some weird movements with his hands, “I'm like this cool ninja sharpshooter!”

“Are you joking?”

“I’m serious!” he protested crossing his arms and looking away. Keith was smiling in his direction. A rare sight that, for some reason, Lance couldn't get mad at. “Everyone in the royal family has white hair, you know? Except for me.”

Keith tensed up a bit when he noticed that Lance was actually trying not to sound too sad about it.

“It’s fine really! I’m used to it!” Lance tried to ignore the look his father used to give him or the low whispers of the nobles that his mind had decided to remember, “I have my own ways of doing stuff!” He took a deep breath, “I just wish I could help my sister more. She works too much! But it’s not like she lets me help… How can I prove my worth if she keeps forcing me to stay in my room?”

Keith didn't know how to answer that, but before an awkward silence formed between them, he decided to point out the only thing he could think of, “Well… You don't look very locked up in a room right now…”

“That’s because I sneaked out!” Lance said proudly, “Cool _ninja_ sharpshooter! Remember?”

“Oh yeah! Right!” Keith deadpanned swallowing a laugh.

“I’m serious! Allura _would never_ let me come to the surface! It's like mermaid rule number one!”

“What? So mermaids are not supposed to come to the surface?”

“Exactly!” Lance explained, “Well, it’s something recent, I guess… The rules only started after the war.” Keith looked at Lance curiously, “Don’t go to the surface! Don’t leave Altea!” Keith heard as Lance started to enumerate all the 'mermaid rules’, adorably counting them with his long fingers, “I’m missing one!” he stated almost offended, summoning Keith from his thoughts.

“What about humans?” The black haired teen asked, “Is this… ok?”

“Of course not! That's like mermaid rule zero. Don't talk to human” he made a strange accent, “Don’t even go near them, Lance! And stop exploring those quiznaking sunken ships!”

Keith laughed softly. Lance looked at him, fangs adorably showing up, “That’s what my sister sounds like!” The mermaid swam closer to the rock where Keith was sitting.

The purple eyed teen had already taken his boots off and was sitting on the edge of the boulder, letting the small waves kiss his feet. Lance approached him carefully, resting his shoulders on the rock. And even tho Lance had never been that close to him before, Keith didn't even try to reach for his blade this time. He only observed as Lance’s fins danced with the waves.

“She is amazing, you know? My sister. She has been ruling Altea all by herself ever since I can remember! She also leads the army! And has these awesome powers. And her siren scream? Man, you _do not_ want to hear _that_!”

“Yeah… figured!”

“I wish I was a bit more like her. Everyone adores her. The nobles and commoners too. She always seems to know what to do. She is an awesome leader. I don't think I’ve ever seen her make a mistake!”

 _Unlike me_ , he thought. But could not bring himself to say it.

Keith looked at him sadly.

Lance was so… pure. He couldn't believe he had been so vile to him. He had doubted and tried to double cross him into betraying his own people. Yet, the only thing Lance ever asked from him was the meaning of some stupid words. Or some cute curiosities about mankind. Completely harmless questions. Something stuck in his chest.

Lance never had any intention of harming him or using him to gather intel.

Keith hated the sea. He hated it and the creatures that lived there. Cold monsters in those dark depths, but for some reason, right now, he hated his own self a lot more. For sinking so low.

Lance was nothing like the stories he had heard about mermaids. He was bright like the sun, smiling ever so kindly.

 _Dark_.

His eyes left a warm and kind look on his face, that filled Keith's heart with a sensation he had long forgotten.

 _Cold_.

And the sound of his voice was silvery and calming.

_Screams._

Lance wasn’t the beast he had grown hearing stories about. He was the pure opposite of everything he’d ever believed mermaids to be.

Lance wasn't the monster. Keith _was_.

Keith was the one that had tried to play someone. He was the one acting like a cold demon that came from the dark depths, with only killing intent in his mind.

Lance was almost human. Lance was probably more human than he ever was.

Than he ever would be.

Keith knew he was losing himself. He had lost the only person that could keep him grounded. Keith looked away, afraid that Lance could see through him, even tho he knew the mermaid was only waiting for an answer. “She sounds a lot like my brother,” Keith started hesitantly. He saw Lance’s eyes open up in surprise before relaxing into a fond smile. “Well, we’re not really blood connected, but he-” Keith took a deep breath, “Shiro was the only one that didn't give up on me! I’m not giving up on him! That’s why I’m not leaving the garrison till I find him.”

Lance opened his mouth to ask Keith what had happened but he soon remembered Keith’s words from the previous day, _Do you take prisoners?_

It didn't take him long to do the maths.

Lance said nothing. He couldn't bring himself to, and soon a weird silence formed between sea and land.

A wave crashed into the boulder where Keith sat, wetting his legs to the knees, “I hate it!” Keith mentioned abruptly, eyes fixated on the horizon. Lance glanced at him, uncertain if those words were directed at him or not. “I hate it so much,” another wave crashed against the rock, “So why?”

Lance’s face narrowed. “Why did you save me?” Keith insisted.

The blue tailed mermaid knew how stupid it was. He couldn’t bring himself to admit how weak he was, and before he knew it his voice coming out tight and almost defensive, “Look, I’ve already told you-” yet Lance felt his throat go dry as he spotted the human’s eyes. His chest tightened at those melancholic purple orbs, staring into the darkest corners of his soul. Looking for answers. Lance sighed. “It-It looked _painful._ ” he declared, receiving a confused look from the human. “I know… I know… It sounds stupid! I was surprised too! Before I knew it I was already helping you back to shore.” Lance took a deep breath as Keith’s eyes sank into him. “I- I realised something, and I panicked! I just couldn’t stand there and see it happen!”

Keith didn’t say anything. He wasn’t gazing at Lance anymore either, opting to stare into the horizon instead.

“I believe in you!” he admitted, “I don't really understand… But I believe you.” Lance smiled. A beautiful and radiant smile.

“I hate mermaids,” Keith uttered. Lance would have probably snapped at him if he hadn't continued, “They took everything away from me. I can’t forgive that…”

Lance gulped. He knew what he meant. Another wave crashed against the rock, managing to wet part of Keith’s jeans.

Lance hesitated. He wanted to apologize, but at the same time, it didn’t feel like the right thing to do. Could he really apologize for something like that? Was his intent even welcomed? Probably not.

Keith’s gaze met Lance’s for a slim second before he added, “Have you lost someone because of _us_ too?”

Lance was _not_ expecting that. “My parents,” he murmured, “They died in the war some years ago. First my mother and, after some years, my father.” The blue tailed mermaid wasn’t particularly fond of speaking about it, but for some reason, he proceeded, “They were good. Always worrying about everyone, helping those in need,” his voice cracked, “I miss them…” he muffled a sob, his right hand involuntarily grabbing the jewelry of his necklace, “But, my sister. I have my sister!”, he laughed sadly, trying to ignore the turmoil of emotions that danced in this throat, “She worries a lot, always scared that something-” He stopped. Unable to finish the sentence. “I was young so I don't remember much about what happened to my mother. When my father died, my sister had to take over! She was so young at the time, but she has this strength inside of her. She rose up when I couldn’t even bring myself to look up and assured the safety of everyone. She’s doing a great job all by herself, ruling Altea.” Lance's eyes focused on the waters, “I want to help! But I can never do anything. Actually I make things worst! I’m like the worst Prince ever!”

An awkward silence formed between the two of them. The sun was finally setting, gifting them with the darkening blue that gradually shifted into a soft purple. The seagulls sang across the skies, and their melody was guided by the sounds of the crashing waves and the whistles of the kind wind.

Keith looked at Lance again, a frail smile on his face. “Do you, hmm... hate us?” Lance nodded. “But you would still save a human from drowning?”

“I guess… I’m a modest creature!”. Lance was playing with his tail. Keith looked at him, noticing not just the crown of pearls in his head but the sea star that hadn't been there before **.** He took a deep breath and Lance’s eyes shooted back at him. shoot

“My parents died too,” he admitted, “I was young and had no one I could rely on,” Keith wavered, struggling to understand why he was opening to a mermaid. He never talked about his parents' death to anyone before. Not even Shiro had heard much about it. Yet Keith proceeded, “I was on my own, then I was taken by an orphanage for 2 years. I hated that time more than anything, one day I left. I had made up my mind, but then Shiro appeared. He helped me out! Taught me everything I know.”

Keith stopped for a second, taking a deep breath before continuing, “Shiro was like a brother to me. He never asked for anything in return for everything he did. He didn’t just save my life, he gave it a purpose. But- I’ve always felt like I had to at least repay him at least bit!” he intertwined his own fingers, “When he suggested joining the Garrison I agreed. I wanted to be by his side and help. Maybe I should’ve said no, maybe he would have changed his mind, maybe he would still be alive…”

Keith couldn’t bring himself to continue. He knew Lance didn’t have anything to do with his brother disappearance. He wondered if Lance had even ever hurt any human. For some reason Keith couldn’t believe that to be true. Yet mermaids attacking and killing humans was a reality that he couldn’t ignore.

“So you joined the army because of your brother?” Lance’s voice came out carefully as if he was afraid to be pushing too far.

Keith nodded, “Shiro went on a mission a month ago and he never returned. The Garrison controls everything, without their authorization, no one can approach a beach. That’s why I remained in the army. To have a chance to look for my brother since no one else dares to do it. But I wasn’t very lucky. Most of the beaches are sealed off and are constantly guarded and I’m still a cadet so I’m not authorized to go near them yet.

A soft smile appeared on Lance’s face as he thought, _Yet here you are,_  but he said nothing, listening to everything Keith had to say.

“They say it’s to prevent more casualties. But-” Keith’s eyes shoot back at Lance, “You said mermaids are not allowed to come to the surface?”

“Yeah!” Lance nodded, “That’s rule number one! If you break that one you’re doomed to be sent to prison.”

Keith raised a brow as if asking, _Then what are you doing here!?_

Lance giggled, “I’m her brother she would _never_ send me to prison. Besides, I really like it up here. It’s relaxing.” Keith was actually starting to understand what Lance meant, “Besides, no one really comes to the surface. They’re all afraid of the humans.”

“It makes no sense…” Black hair danced with the wind, “Then how do you…” Keith hinted, but Lance didn’t seem to understand where he was going with that.

“You know…” Keith insisted, “How do you mermaids get enough human flesh to eat if you can’t come to the surface to hunt?”

Lance almost interrupted the question with a high pitched scream, “Do? DO! DO WHAT? We don’t eat that! That’s disgusting, Keith!”

“Ohh! So _that’s_ why you didn’t attack me before!” Keith looked like he had found the answers to the biggest taunting question that ever tormented him.

“Oh my Goddess! Stop saying stuff like that! I’ll puke!” Lance was swinging his hands in front of his face, “Oh no! I’m starting to sound like Hunk!”

Keith titled his head, looking at him curiously, “It’s a friend of mine,” he explained, “But seriously dude! We only eat algae and some specific fish!”

 _Something doesn’t make sense,_ Keith thought to himself while Lance continued his rambling, _If mermaids don’t come to the shores. If mermaids don’t even need to come to shores, then why did they seal off every known access to the beaches._ Keith bit his own lip when he realised something far more intriguing, _Why did the Garrison make up that mermaids preyed on humans?_

“Hey, Keith!” The human looked up, as Lance’s words shot him out of his own thoughts. Lance was close. Too close. Blue eyes almost glowing with the twilight. Keith gulped as his heart speed up for no apparent reason, “Have you ever seen rain?”

Keith blinked. _Is he serious? Of course, I’ve seen rain._

Yet before the black haired teen could speak, Lance had already continued, “You know rain, right? When not sea water falls from the sky!” The mermaid looked up, “Why does it do it? Hunk says it is because the Goddess is crying in pure frustration at my flirting attempts with the mermaids that work in the castle.” Keith let out a chuckle and two blue eyes looked at him intrigued. Yet, Lance smiled back.

“I’ve only seen it once!” the blue tailed mermaid offered, "I was swimming near the surface with my friend when it started. I’ve never seen something so beautiful in my life. The whole surfaced started twisting and small circles appears on it.” he was using his hands to explain, “But then the circles grew wider and wider and some of them would touch the others and his whole awesome pattern appeared out of nowhere. It looked like Coran’s shoulder tattoo or something. I don't know!” A sad smile appeared on his face, “I wanted to come to the surface and see what it looked like…” he sighed, “But Hunk didn’t let me! He even decided to blackmail me with the book I had found on a sunken ship the day before! Can you believe it! I’m his prince!”

“Yeah… I’ve seen it…”

“Really?” Lance’s eyes lit up like the sun, “What is it like? Is it really not salty? Is that even possible?”

Keith chuckled looking at how soft Lance actually looked. His hair wasn’t very even now that it had dried and his acute ears were intriguing. Keith wondered if the scales near the pointy end even had any purpose, besides making his eyes look more intense.

“It’s not salt water.”

“Really? What does it look like?”

“It’s…” Keith wondered for a bit. But he wasn’t quite sure how to explain it, “It’s beautiful!” He saw how Lance’s face twisted into an annoyed pout, “I’d rather not spoil it for you because I'm sure you’ll see it one day!”

A small smile formed on Lance’s lips. It was soft and filled with uncertainty. Purple eyes lingered a bit longer at the sight of the mermaid.

Lance and him weren't so different after all. Keith wanted to apologise. He wanted to apologize for everything he had tried to do. But he couldn't bring himself to. The words stuck in his throat. But maybe, there was some other way to apologise. One that didn't involved using words. Keith smiled, as an idea picked into his mind. Lance seemed to be very fond of humans and their culture.

“Oh quiznack!”, Lance snapped out of nowhere making Keith glance at him, “It’s getting pretty late, I should get going!”

“Wait, Lance!” The name came out so naturally even Keith was afraid of how it sounded, “I-hmm… Have you seen the stars?”

“Of course I've seen them!” Lance sounded slightly offended, but Keith could hear the weak playful tone in his voice.

“Oh!” The human sounded almost sad for a moment, “Then I guess you've already heard of the old stories linked to them. About heroes and gods?”

Lance arched a brow. _Bingo._

“Would you like to hear them?”

“Of course!” Lance beamed, “I’m totally signing up on that! Just say when!”

“Maybe tomorrow? At dusk?” Keith offered reluctantly.

Lance hesitated, looking slightly away, "I don't think I can sneak out that late tomorrow..."

"Oh... Right..." The mermaid looked up and saw how wistful Keith actually looked. It made his heart speed up, "What about the day after?"

“But I'll probably be able to do it!” he immediately spat out without giving it much thought and was rewarded with a kind smile. Lance let himself fall off the boulder where Keith was sitting, swimming backward for a bit, “See ya, around then!” He dived back into the depths leaving the human staring at the darkening sky.

“What am I doing?” Keith mumbled to himself before carefully letting himself fall on the boulder, his back on the harsh rock, while his eyes stared at the sky.

 

_I just hope I don't regret this..._

 

* * *

 

Pidge walked inside the room shared with Keith, just to find it empty. Again.

“He’s gone again?” the voice came out uncertain, “What is going on with him? This isn't normal…”

Sitting on the bed and picking up the computer, Pidge didn't lose much time. Soon a small USB devicewas insert in the computer and a window popped up on the screen.

Brown eyes searched across the document, reading it carefully.

Over and over.

Yet it didn't take long to figure out that nothing new could be learned from that one either.

All Pidge’s attempts had failed to reveal any useful information about the Kerberos mission. Yet, Pidge refused to give up.

A soft sigh came out from the thin lips, “I’m not stopping till I find out what happened to him. I’ll sneak into Iverson’s office and get every single bit of intel stored in that main computer if I have to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I hope you guys enjoyed this week's update. Keith and Lance finally had their bonding moment.  
>  Also thank you for all the kudos, comments, bookmarks, subscriptions and feedback given! This fic already has more subs than my previous one, and I'm not even half way through it! So awesome! Thank you!  
>    
>  _clovenheifer _is an actual word said by Coran in season 2 btw, and the other weird expression are from Coran too.__  
>    
>  _Have a nice day! And again, thanks for reading! <3_  
> 


	5. Chapter 5

Lance swam across the marble corridors that drained into his room. His face was scrunched into an annoyed pout. Why? Simple. It was the second time in this Spicolian movement that he couldn't sneak out to meet with Keith.

The giant doors to his room appeared before his eyes and the mermaid noticed with irritation the two guards still stationed there. Waiting for him to return. Waiting to make sure he wouldn't leave.

Lance tried to pay them no mind. They were just doing their job after all. A job that Lance disagreed tremendously with. But still, their job. They bowed slightly as the prince approached, opening the heavily decorated doors, allowing the blue tailed mermaid to swam inside.

A sigh escaped Lance as he felt the doors close behind him. He waited for a moment, peering backward like that would help him hear better what was happening behind those doors. Then, he sadly swam towards the window.

It was too late. He knew it just from staring at the sea currents. Keith would have left by now, and Lance could only hope, the human wasn't mad at him.

Why should he be, anyway?

It was not like they had agreed to meet each other every day. Not like Lance would mind that. He wouldn't mind that at _all_.

The prince peered another look outside, watching as the crystal above the castle shined brighter. Which wasn’t unusual, since the crystal's glow always intensified as the full moon approached.

 _Maybe I should apologize_ , the prince thought, imagining the figure of the human waiting for him for hours. Lance shook his head as if the movement could erase his thoughts.

There was _no way_ Keith had waited for him for hours. Impossible.

The guy hated mermaids and probably was only being nice because Lance _technically_ had saved his life. Yup! That was it!

 _But then again,_ the mermaid trailed off, eyes gazing up as if he could see the sky that spread above him, and all the stars that lived there, _What kind of idiot would see the stars with an enemy?_

Lance giggled, hands rushing to his face to hide the stupid smile peering in his lips and the crimson trail across his cheeks.

The prince swam backward, a slim hope that maybe, just maybe, Keith didn't hate him, danced in his heart.

He settled on the bed, staring at the ceiling and imagined that, the thousand different shells that hanged from there, were the stars that Keith told him about.

Even though their nocturnal meeting had happened some quintants ago, Lance still had the moment burned into his mind, and every time he closed his eyes, he could feel himself being taken there.

The soft breeze in his hair. The darkening sky. The setting sun.

Lance was sitting on a rock that linked both sea and land. The lower part of his tail and fins were underwater with the swift currents playing with them. His torso and right arm were laying on the rock. Lance was slightly turned to his right as he laid there, staring at something far brighter than any star.

Keith didn't seem to notice it. He sat next to Lance, closer than they had ever been until then, legs pulled close to him and knees touching his chest. One arm was wrapped them, the other pointing at the twinkling sky above them.

The glow of the moon the only light in the darkness. Lance had never really realised how beautiful it looked seen from land, shining above the ocean, reflecting her light on it.

Just like the goddess enlightened them in the darkness of the depths.

Keith was smiling. His features softer than the wind that playing with his black hair. His eyes as bright as any star.

Lance has to admit that most of the names of the stars and constellations were already missing in his memories. And the big majority of the stories were so complex, the mermaid was lost before Keith could even finish them. But that didn't really matter.

The human’s hand moved suddenly, drawing Lance’s attention, “Ohh you’re gonna like this one!” Lance gulped when the violet eyes looked at him, and he was ever so grateful Keith didn't seem to notice in his excitement, “Over there,” the human's voice rang in Lance's ears, and for the first time in vargas, the prince's eyes looked at the sky, “That’s Hyades!”

Lance had no idea what star Keith was talking about, but he didn't dare disturb him.

“Hyades had a sister, Hyas.” The story began once more, and Lance slumped deeper into the rock where he was laying, looking for a more comfortable position, “Hyas was a hunter. A fierce hunter that never feared any challenged that appeared in her path. Yet, Hyas was not immortal, and one day her bravery came at the cost of her own life. Her sister, powerless, watched Hyas die, weeping in grief for days. Soon, water fell from the skies an-”

“Wait!” Lance said abruptly, interrupting the human that for a moment was too startled to speak, “Is that rain?”

Keith chuckled.

“Yes Lance, that’s rain.” Keith smiled softly as the mermaid’s expression brightened in wonder. Eyes so vivid in the darkness and Keith could swear that even his tattoos seemed to glow in the same blue as the ocean in Lance’s orbs. “But wait… If rain is the tears of…” Lance tried to remember the name, but he soon gave up, “...of that lady… Then how is it not salt water?!”

Keith laughed, “No Lance. That’s only a story, a myth. That’s not how rain appeared.”

“Then what is it?”

“Believe me when I say this story is a rather more interesting explanation for it!”

Lance looked annoyed, “Come on! Tell me!” he insisted, pushing himself in Keith direction.

So close Keith could feel the mermaid’s breath brush his face gently. So close.

Too close.

Keith moved away, eyes immediately focusing on anything but Lance, “It’s hmmm…”

“Yeah?” Lance offered, a smug smile on his face, as he reached closer, refusing to let the human escape.

“It's because the water evaporates and, after some time, when too much water accumulates in falls back down.”

“What?”

Keith looked at the mermaid. His eyes were so bright, staring right into the darker parts of his soul.

“What’s evaporate?”

Keith laughed, “Oh right… That doesn't happen underwater…” he said softly, “Let me see… When-”

“Spit it out, man!”

Lance squirmed, a high pitched scream leaving his mouth against his will. He looked around, instantly rising from his bed, “Hunk?!” his voice came out a lot higher than it should have, and Lance coughed and repeated himself, this time, on a slighter lower tone, “Hunk! What are you doing here?”

His friend gave him a suspicious look, “I’ve been knocking on your door for a varga! And since you weren't responding I decided to enter.”

“A varga? Sure! I'll pretend I believe that!”

Hunk said nothing. His brown eyes were filled with suspicion as he swam closer to Lance, “So tell me… Where were you the other night?”

Lance internally scream. He couldn't mean _that night._ He offered in his most convincing tone, “I was here. Grounded. FOR LIFE!”

“Oh really?” Hunk arched a brow and Lance knew he had been caught, “Because I don't really remember seeing you around when I came to tell you that Allura was calling for you!”

Lance gulped, “Please, tell me you backed me up!”

“I told her a very reasonable excuse. She looked convinced.” Lance noticeably let out a breath he hadn't realised he was holding, “But! You know how I hate to lie to her! So _you_ better spit everything out, man!”

“I just went for a swim! I was feeling really bored and-”

“LANCE!”

“Ok! Alright! I’ll tell you everything!” He almost screamed. His voice quieted down, almost to the tone of a whisper as he continued, “But you have to promise you won't tell anyone!”

“Oh man, this can't be good!”

“ _Especially_ . _NOT. Allura!”_

 _“_ Oh dear goddess, Lance! What _have_ you done! I shouldn't have backed you up! _Now I'm an accomplice!_ Noooo! She’s going to kill me! I’m too young to die!”

Lance observed as his friend undid himself in tears, sinking deeper into the waters, to keep a more dramatic effect to his prayers. That or he was so scared he forgot how to swim.

“Quit with your excessive drama! I only met someone!” Hunk saw as his friend tried to hide the smile peering in his lips, and within an instant, he was grinning as well.

“Ohh~ Can’t believe someone is stupid enough to date you!”

“We’re not dating!” the prince corrected his friend immediately, blushing furiously, “We’re just…” his tone had softened and Hunk knew Lance was thinking about the certain someone, “... We’re just meeting and stuff… no big deal!”

“Oh! It _is_ a big deal! Who’s the lucky girl this time?”

“It’s not a girl! It’s a guy…” Lance corrected the yellow-tailed mermaid, “And stop implying I date every girl I see!”

“I didn't say that, man!”

“You thought of it! And correction! I _flirt_ with girls! And they adore it!”

“Yeah… Sure, Lance!”

Silence swam through the water that surrounded them, before Hunk could gather enough strength to ask, “So… Who is he?”

“He’s beautiful!” Lance immediately answered looking slightly to his right, something he did when he tried to remember something, “He has hair darker than the deeper depths! And skin whiter than the sand from the shores-”

“Shores that you should have never visited!”

“-And his eyes? Oh! Hunk! It's like nothing you've ever seen!”

“Oh man… you’re in so deep!”

“I’m serious! They're of this purple colour. But not as purple as that!” He pointed to the mural behind him, and Hunk immediately knew he was referring to the goddess purple tail, “It's this soft purple. Or maybe it's violet? I don’t know! But their so captivating, I feel like I could stare at them forever…” Lance had let himself fall into his bed again, and now was staring at the ceiling playing with the shells that hang from above him.

“I don't think I've ever seen you like this…”

“I don't think I’ve ever _been_ like this!”

Hunk laughed, “Ok. I get that the guy is pretty, but who is he? Exactly?”

Lance felt himself freeze.

“Does he work in the castle? He isn't a noble, is he? Do I know him?”

“No!” Lance answered before Hunk could keep his rambling going, “He…” his heart skipped a beat, “He is a… soldier!” he said finally, “That’s it! I meet him accidentally one time when he was… on his duties? Patrolling I think?” Hunk raised a brow. But said nothing. At least not for a while.

“A soldier? I wasn't expecting that…” Hunk offered. But he didn't seem dubious, he seemed surprised, “I thought you hated the army and everyone in it!”

“And I do! Well, I did!” Lance corrected himself, “That was before. When I was young and thought the soldiers and the war were the only things trapping me down here!”

Hunk could hear how irritated Lance had become, but soon the prince's tone had changed again. And he was smiling softly, “Besides… He is not like those guys that join the army for the glory and reputation that comes with it.” Lance looked at Hunk, eyes brighter than the crystal in the necklace around his neck, “He is looking for his brother that went missing because of the war!”

“Oh…” Hunk made a sad sound of acknowledgment.

“He lost his parents just like I did, so his brother was the only one he had left in his family.”

Hunk made a concerned face, “Well… If his brother disappeared because of the war…” Lance's eyes peered up, “If humans were to get him I doubt-”

“It’s gonna be fine! Keith will find him! I'm sure!”

“Keith? That’s a strange name…” Hunk’s face twisted and Lance knew it was all over. Stupid Human Names! “Keith? Wait, Lance! _How long_ have you been seeing this guy?”

Lance tried to not seem too relieved, “Dunno… a couple of quintants ago…”

“Oh please! I bet you know the exact time you saw him for the first time!”

Lance laughed, “Ok ok! You got me… I meet him in the last Spicolian movement.”

“OMG! What? I thought this was a recent thing! You’ve been meeting him for 7 quintants, already?”

“Actually is, 9 quintants, 7 vargas, 32 douboches and a couple of ticks! But It would be creepy to say that!”

Lance laughed as soon as his eyes met Hunk, “I was joking big guy! For the love of the Goddess, calm down!”

“Oh! Thank the Goddess!” He looked at the mural almost in a prayer, “You really creeped me out when you reached the douboches, man!”

Lance saw his friend smile back at him, “You’re smiling again!”

“No, I’m not!” Lance offered, looking away slightly embarrassed.

“It’s fine!” The yellow tailed mermaid laughed, “I’m happy for you, buddy!” He swam closer to his friend, hugging him in his big strong arms that had been Lance’s only comfort so many times, “You should tell Allura! I’m sure she won't be mad at you!”

“I… don’t think that's a good idea…”

“There’s nothing wrong in falling in love…”

_Unless it’s a human._

Lance looked away, “Besides! I would have to admit that I broke the punishment! So no can do!”

“Hmm… Fine!” Hunk said, putting some distance between the two of them.

“Remember, Hunk! You promised!”

“Yeah yeah! I won't tell!” He had lifted his hands up in surrender, “But seriously, man! After the lunar cycle is over… You should tell your sister about it.”

“I don't think she would like the idea…” Lance sighed, “Besides… Sometimes it just feels like we're from two different worlds. I guess a part of me just know that-” Lance stopped, words trapped in his throat, “Maybe it's not meant to be…”

“Oh, Lance…” Hunk swam closer to his friend, trying to bring to him some comfort, “Is all this because you’re a prince? And the whole _must marry into noble blood_ thing?” Lance peered at his friend, “There is no pressure for you to marry with a noble since your sister is the ruler-”

“HUNK! We’re not _even dating!_ Why are you talking about marriage!? Dear Goddess!”

 

* * *

 

 

Lance sighed, twiddling his thumbs in a terrible attempt to distract himself.

It was a rather futile struggle and Lance knew it, but for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to stop. His fingers playfully tangled with each other offering him a distraction. Not the best distraction. But, still. A distraction. And Lance would gladly accept anything as long as it could keep his mind off of Keith.

Well, not Keith… More like, how to apologise to Keith.

A simple layout of how the conversation should go had played in his mind way too many times, and by now, Lance would gladly enjoy anything that helped him stop thinking about it.

It would be an understatement to say that he wasn't nervous. Goddess, he _was_ nervous. He didn't even know if he should apologise at all.

He was pretty much the ' _go with the flow'_  type of person. Somehow, things just worked for him in the heat of the moment. Not always in the best way. But at least he got somewhere.

Lance was used to being in situations.

Formal situations. Informal situations. Tight situations. Even stupid situations.

And going with the flow had _always_ been the best way to go through all of them.

Being a prince had forced him so many times out of his comfort zone, and practically as soon as he was born, that he ended up developing his unique way of getting around situations he couldn't really anticipate most of the times.

But Keith was a completely different case.

And Lance just didn’t want to screw things up. Especially now that they were starting to get along.

The price was forced out of his thoughts by the sound of a very familiar voice, “So you actually show up today?” the voice was playful but Lance could hear the soft hint of worry in it. And _that_ did bad things to his chest.

“Oh! Yeah…” His eyes shot up from his fidgeting finger, immediately meeting Keith’s violet orbs. Lance was grateful he wasn’t too lost for words, “I, hmm, Something came up. I couldn’t make it.”

The human seemed a bit relieved. Or at least, Lance thought the particular change in his expression was relief, “It’s fine. No need to explain yourself…” he trailed off, “I figure something had happened. It’s not like we had planned to- hmm,” The mermaid paid close attention as Keith seemed to be lost for words.

“Sorry about that!” Lance offered anyway, smiling towards his friend, “I wish there was some way to warn you when I can’t meet tho.”

A small smile tucked in the corner of Keith’s mouth, “That would be nice.”

“I know right?” Lance saw as Keith approached him, sitting on the sand, “Hunk and I used to have this system so we could talk to each other without anyone else finding out. He was the one that made it, and I don't really know how it worked, but it worked! And it was awesome!”

Keith smiled, he wasn’t looking at Lance, simply taking off his boots and leaving them next to him.

“We don’t use it anymore, tho.” At the sudden change in Lance’s tone Keith’s eyes looked up, searching for the blue orbs in front of him.

“Why not?”

“It’s broken. Hunk tried to fix it but he never could.”

“That’s a shame…”

Lance only hummed in response, both of them not really sure of how to proceed the conversation. It was a bit awkward, but it didn’t take long for Lance to find another topic, even if it didn’t have anything to do with the first. And Keith was grateful.

He had never very fond of social interaction, and maintaining conversations was where he sucked the most. He listened to what others told him, but when was time to reply he never knew what to say. Even casual conversation could be quite a pain that Keith, at some point, decided to memorize some simple questions he could ask. Not because he wanted to know the answer, but to maintain a conversation going, and avoid the awkward silence that normally followed.

But Lance was a different case. He made things easier, and Keith was grateful that he always knew what to say next. Or that he didn’t seem to bother with Keith’s sloppy replies.

“No, Keith! You have no idea!”  Lance was waving his hands above him, as he recited one of his many adventures about exploring human ruins, “Only when I reached closer I realised how gorgeous it was!” He looked to the right, “It was clearly some sort of old city. There were buildings all over the place. Most of them were crumbling, but some were still standing.”

“Cool…”

“They were all built in this cream rock, and even after so many years it was still standing!” Keith hummed, “The city was submerged, Keith! And most of it was still standing! How awesome is that!”

“Pretty awesome…”

“But you will never believe what happened next!”

“What happened next?”

“As a swam through the ruins, I saw something far more unsettling,” Keith raised an eyebrow, “So there was I, Lance McClain, face to face with an enormous white shark!” Lance was waving his hands like a dork, “No, Keith! You have no idea how big that _thing_ was! And its teeth! Sharp and white!” He saw the mermaid flinch, “I still have chills everytime I think about it!”

Keith was smiling amused with where the story was going, “So? What did you do?”

Lance looked him, straight in the eye, “I did what every brave mermaid would do when faced with such danger,” his voice was low as if to build a bit of suspense. Keith had leaned closer, in an impulsive attempt to hear the mermaid better. “ _I swam away!_ ”

Keith tried to swallow the laugh that built-in his throat but he really couldn’t, and soon, he was laying on the sand, cracking into laughter as Lance protested.

“I’m serious, Keith! Don’t laugh!” Keith’s laugh could be heard over Lance’s voice, “That thing was huge! Not just huge! It was fast! It chased me all the way back to Altea!” Lance’s voice had gradually grown higher as he explained.

“Oh my god! What happened next?”

“I swam faster and faster! Faster than I ever had in my whole life and reached the particle barrier in time!” Lance saw Keith’s confused look, and he immediately knew what to say, “The particle barrier keeps the dangers of the ocean like predators away from us. It's like a glowy thing that only we can cross!”

“And then? What happened?”

“Well, the shark swam away! But I was far from being safe. A far more dangerous fate awaited me.” He was trying to build suspense with his voice again, “I almost passed out, Keith!”

“The shark returned?”

“No, Keith!” Lance offered, “My sister did!”

And the human was laughing again, eyes brightening and his whole face lighting up. It was a beautiful sight. Lance had explored many beautiful ruins. He had seen the most outstanding shipwrecks. He had swum through the most dazzling coral reefs. But none of those could even come close to the charm of Keith, simply, laughing.

Violet orbs were on him, “There’s something I don’t understand.”

“Yeah?” Lance encouraged him to go on. He was practically laying by Keith side, only the bottom part of this tail touching the water if he stretched it.

“How come you can cross the particle barrier thing, but the shark can't?”

“Oh right!” Lance grinned and spinning around, sat next to Keith, “We’re all linked to the crystal that creates the particle barrier.” Keith wanted to question about this crystal, but before he could, Lance was shoving his right arm in front of his eyes.

“What are you doing?”

“They’re pretty cool, right?” Lance didn’t hear the human, “I actually have a lot more than normal, but these tattoos appear when we’re born!”

Keith’s eyes looked at Lance’s for a moment, then he peered a look at the markings on his arms. They were rather appealing. Simple patterns that stretched in this arms, back, and part of the chest. The tattoos had a particular glow to them, so dim, Keith had never noticed it until now. His hand reached carefully, trailing the soft lines in Lance’s right arm. They were so beautiful, making a perfect contrast against his tanned skin. As Keith’s eyes stared at the ones in his back, he found his hand being dragged to them as well. He eyed at the v like pattern before his finger brushed against it.

Keith feels Lance flinch when his hands touched his tattoo. He doesn’t think much of it, assuming he only had startled the mermaid, but as he trails off the marks he realised that that’s not the case.

“Are you,” he looks at Lance, seeing if he could get a reaction out of him, “ _ticklish_?”

“No!” Lance answers, but his defensive tone sells him away.

Keith’s small smile quickly morphs into a shit eating grin, “Oh… So you won’t mind if I do this!” His hand attacks Lance’s waist, tickling without mercy, “Or this!”

The mermaid falls to the sand, laughing, “Keith! Stop!”

But the human doesn’t really obey the command, only trailing his fingers across Lance’s skin. He soon realised the mermaid’s weak points were close to the tattoos.

Meanwhile, Lance undoes himself in laughter and tears. When he tried to protect his waist, Keith attacks the upper part of his arms, and when he tries to defend his arms, his waist awaits defenseless.

Keith is above him smiling as he tickles Lance to death, “Oh please! Keith! You win! I surrender!”

The human only grins, “I take no prisoners!” he declared playfully hitting another one of Lance’s weak spots. Lance whines under Keith’s victorious grin, “I have brought down the mighty Prince of Altea!”

“Hey! Who said you won?” Lance protested. Both his hands were pinned above his head by one of Keith’s hand, “I haven’t given up yet!”

“You said I won just a moment ago!” Keith proclaimed fighting to maintain Lance pinned.

“I lied!” Lance flipped his tail and successfully threw water in their direction. Keith was hit by most of it.

“Oh my- Lance!”

“Ah!” The prince laughed, victoriously admiring Keith’s dripping mullet, “Who’s the winner now!”

Keith found it impressive how he could be so arrogant while pinned to the sand. He positioned his leg to ground Lance’s tail and without ever letting go of Lance’s hands, attacked his waist.

Lance yelled. Fighting not to laugh and to release himself, but couldn’t.

“Say it!”

“Never!” The prince looked away, avoiding Keith’s gorgeous eyes. He could feel the water drops, that fell from his hair, hitting his face.

“Alright. Then, I shall finish you!” Keith declared and started to tickle Lance again.

They both fought for the long minutes that followed. Keith tried to maintain Lance pinned most of the time, but the mermaid was slippery and found different ways to escape the human’s grip.

In the end, both of them, rested, back on the sand, too tired to say a word. None of them was sure who won, but that wasn’t the point anymore.

Keith stared at the sky above them, desperate to catch his breath. The sun was yet to set but he could already see the moon hanging in the sky.

“The moon is already showing up.” he said abruptly, between tired sighs.

Keith couldn’t really see Lance’s face, but he knew the other one was smiling, “The goddess is always in the sky looking at us!”

“The moon?” Keith turned to the side, peering at Lance with interest.

“Yeah. She controls the tides from the sky and watches over us.”

Keith hums, and Lance continues, “She sacrificed herself to save us, and so, she was forever immortalized amongst the stars. She lights the dark sky in the dark with her soft glow.”

Lance felt as Keith’s eyes left him and went back to staring at the sky, that gradually darkened, even if the sun still had to set, “That’s why the moon is silver!” Lance explained, “It’s the same color as the goddess hair.”

Keith didn’t say a word, even if he found the explanation a bit ridiculous. Soon, Lance was speaking again, telling Keith the legend of the goddess. A dazzling grin spread across Lance’s face, and Keith couldn’t help but to smile and hear him.

 

* * *

 

 

Keith let out an annoyed sigh, groaning internally when he realised it had happened again.

He dozed off.

Still, it wasn't just his fault. The whole class was being extremely boring and every time Keith actually paid attention it, it was even worst.

Keith leaned forward, resting his chin on his right hand, forcing himself to hear the professor once more.

Every single word coming out of that man’s mouth made _no sense_. At least not to Keith. At least not anymore.

Befriending a mermaid was probably not the cleverest idea ever, but now that was done, there was no turning back.

_Because… We’re friends, right?_

Keith found the question biting at the back of his mind.

Friends was a complicated word for Keith. People were too cunning and egocentric sometimes, caring for nothing else than themselves.

Keith had learned that the worst way.

But then again, Lance was not a person.

Lance _was_ a mermaid. Someone that appeared from out of nowhere, rescued a mortal enemy from certain death and never asked for anything in return.

Keith found himself muffling a giggle.

It was just utterly ridiculous. But then again, everything about Lance seemed ridiculous. In a good way.

He had seen and heard from the mermaid himself how much he had lost in the war, yet he was still able to greet someone like Keith with a warm smile.

And that made something warm up in his chest.

Keith internally scrolled himself when he noticed he wasn't paying attention. Again. His purple eyes lifted off from staring at his empty notebook to look at the professor, that was now speaking of the best ways to survive if you find yourself dragged underwater by a mermaid.

“Attacking the gills is a good way to leave the mermaid disorientated. Also, without air the beast will rise to the surface, giving you the advantage.”

 _Bullshit_ , Keith found himself thinking, _According to Lance, mermaid’s healing process is a lot faster than humans. Striking the gills would do nothing else than make them angrier. Especially if only one side is hit. The mermaid can still breathe underwater, and even if it couldn't, Lance told me that they can hold their breath for at least 3 minutes, which is more than enough to heal superficial injuries._

Keith peered another look at the man, not even bothering to raise his head from the table where he was actually settled way too comfortable. The professor had proceeded enumerating the most sensitive spots to strike and the ones to avoid.

“The webbing between its fingers it's used to gain speed. One could think it is a good place to strike but it actually isn't! That is because most of the speed is gained using the tail. It makes no difference to strike them!”

 _And wrong again._ Keith sighed, accidentally letting his head fall into the table. He felt Pidge’s hand flicked the back of his neck, but Keith paid no mind, too focused on his internal screaming. _And wrong again… Apparently, the_ _membrane between their fingers_ _doesn't just serve to swim faster. It's used to feel currents and other variations in the sea._ He could practically hear Lance's voice in his head, _Because of that, it's actually pretty sensitive. It's linked to our nervous system, and when hurt. Oh goddess, Keith! You have no idea how much that hurts!_

“You ok?” he heard Pidge mumble next to his ear.

“Yeah… I’m fine. Just bored to death…”

His roommate laughed silently, “Yeah I know. This class is shit. The guy is just repeating stuff we already learned about!”

Keith nodded not even bothering to say anything. He would actually love to speak with Pidge about everything he had learned from mermaids with Lance. But he couldn't do that without revealing his not so fateful encounter with a mermaid. And Keith rather keep that a secret.

It was nice.

Day after day, he found himself longing that his classes would end, so he could meet the mermaid again. And anything that could possibly disturb his, pretty much, daily meetings with Lance were to be avoided.

Keith actually had considered speaking with Pidge about his dilemma when he learned mermaids didn't feed on human skin.

It made no sense. And the only thing he could think off was that that particular 'fact’ had been made up.

But why?

The preying on humans thing was basically the reason why the war at started thousands of years ago. Mermaids feed on humans and humans defended themselves.

But if mermaid didn't feed on humans. Then why. Why had the war truly began?

Pidge, given all the info, would probably be able to at least figure out a theory. But Keith was no intellectual. And figuring out why the government was making up a war that apparently had no reason to exist was something that he couldn't do by himself.

But that didn't stop him from trying. Because if there was one thing he was sure of, was that Lance wasn't lying to him.

“You’ve been doing something haven't you?” Pidge asked him quietly, “You’re a lot better. Two weeks ago you looked deader than the bodies buried in the cemetery.”

Keith almost laughed. He knew what his roommate meant. And he knew it was true.

“Not really. I've just been trying to entertain myself with other stuff…” he admitted, touching the back off his head, “Thinking too much about _it_ was getting me nowhere.”

“You haven't given up on-”

“Off course not!” Keith immediately cut Pidge off, not even allowing his brown haired friend to finish, “I haven't and I’m not giving up on Shiro.”

“Yeah… I know. Sorry I hmm,”

“It's fine. Don't worry.”

Keith knew it. Lance had filled a gap in his life that needed to be filled. He had entered out of nowhere, without being asked and for no apparent reason, offering Keith something he had long forgotten he needed to survive.

But Lance could never replace Shiro. And Keith would never give up on his brother.

“You want to hang out? After this…” Pidge eyes rolled and Keith found himself smiling.

“Sure… But I-”

“I need to tell you some stuff…” Keith immediately knew what it was about. Kerberos. “But it can't be here.”

_Yeah… I know._

 

* * *

 

 

The sound of Lance's nails, repeatedly hitting on the shell of the cushion like seat where he was sitting, was the only thing echoing in his room.

The mermaid sighed, internally counting the ticks to meet up with Keith. A groan escaped from the depths of his throat, and the mermaid rose from his seat, swimming at the window. He wished he had a mirror. Maybe his biggest regret on the day he rescued Keith was not getting the quiznaking mirror.

But Lance didn't regret saving Keith. He just wished he could have a mirror to see if he looked ok.

“Ok? Lance you look _flawless_!” the mermaid grinned to himself, carefully studying the partners of the guards, picking the right moment. He waited a couple more ticks, already knowing the surveillance partners too well. His hand reached for the bar and slightly pull it.

“Lance? What _are_ you doing?”

The prince screamed, a high-pitched sound escaping his throat as his whole body jerked.

Lance turned around, “Coran?! What? Oh dear Goddess! You startled me!” he said, hand hanging over his chest and he notoriously tried to calm down, “You don't know how to knock?”

“I did!” The older mermaid offered, “But no reply came so I decided to enter-"

"Why does everybody do _that_!"

"-and make sure you _were still in your room_.”

“Oh, right!” Lance deadpanned, eyes involuntary rolling.

“Don't act like you don't do it every time you have a chance to!” Lance was not amused anymore, “You know perfectly well that it is dangerous and-”

“Yeah yeah! If you came here to give me _the talk_ , the door is there!” Lance pointed at the exit, voice coming out slightly more defensive than he intended it too.

“Oh no, young prince!” Coran laughed. His blue eyes came to linger on Lance for a moment too long, “You were planning to go somewhere or I'm not called Coran Hieronymus Wimbleton Smythe!"

“What?” Lance protested, uncrossing his arms, “Go where? The kitchen?”

“You look way too _overdressed_.” Coran circled him, eyeing every detail in lance, “What's with that shell on your hair?”

“It’s nothing!” Lance complained taking it out of his hair, “You know perfectly well that I like to wear this stuff! And that I use them _every day_!” He was mad, not only Coran was blocking his way to Keith, which was Lance’s only escape from royal life, but also was judging his dressing up habits, “Just leave me alone! What have you come here for anyway?”

“Now, now, young prince. No need to get so irritated.” Lance wanted to shout - _I’m not_ \- but he knew he was, and he knew that would only delay Coran more. “I came here in regard to your sister's request!”

“Allura?”

“She wants to speak with you. Something very important.”

Lance felt himself gulp, _Oh quiznak!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the kudos, subscriptions and bookmarks! I appreciate so much all the comments and I'm glad you guys are enjoying this story! <3  
>  I'm adding a link with my friend's sketches of mermaid Lance's tattoos, [here](https://sakumiyukime.tumblr.com/post/164363999770/here-are-some-sketches-that-my-friend-yunofangirl)  
>  Also, kudos for YooSeven for helping out with my English!  
>    
>  EDIT: So because I'm in a far corner of the world and my internet connection is pretty slow here... For some reason that completely transcends me, sometimes sentences just double when I'm editing the test. I apologize! I know it's pretty annoying and even confusing because sometimes it cuts sentences in half. Also, sometimes I edit, supposedly save but this stupid thing doesn't really save. So yeah... I apologize. If you see something weird in the text please message me so I can fix it. Thank you!


	6. Chapter 6

Keith closed his eyes as he let the cold salt water wash over him completely. He had no idea how Lance had convinced him, but now that he was actually in the water, it actually felt really nice.

He kept himself floating at the surface, muscles relaxed as he stared up at the shining blue sky. If he looked back to land, he could see his t-shirt and coat lying on the shore, right next to his belt and boats. He just hoped his pants would dry by the time he reached the garrison, or he would have a really hard time explaining how he had gotten them wet.

“Are you just going to float around all day?” Lance appeared from under him, laying his arm and elbow on Keith’s chest, lightly enough not to push the human down.

Keith’s eyes left the sky, “I’m already in the water… What do you want more?” He moved to position himself so he could stare at Lance.

“You did promise to swim with me!” Lance reminded him.

“I’m swimming.” Keith deadpanned.

“Down there!” The mermaid’s fingers pointed towards the bottom. The waters were so clear Keith could see easily through them. Even though he had barely moved from the shore, it already seemed very deep, and the sea floor was nowhere to be found.

“In case your fish brain forgot,” Keith swam a bit closer to the mermaid, pressing his neck, where his gills were, “I can’t breathe under water!”

“Keith, I’m not an idiot!”

“Really? You could have fooled me…”

Lance eyed him annoyed, but with Keith’s proud grin and that adorably stupid ponytail, there wasn’t much Lance could do but resign to his fate.

“Come on! I didn’t have all that trouble getting this out for nothing!” He pulled a conch shell from under the waves, showing it off proudly.

“And that would be?...”

“Oh and I’m the idiot! It’s the bubble horn!” But Keith only looked at him confused, “Allows humans to breath underwater?”

“Never heard of that…”

“They are pretty rare…” The human was looking at the mermaid quietly as if waiting for Lance to activate his weird mermaid magical thing. Lance returned the look, “It only works underwater!”

That was all he needed to know. Keith took a deep breath, letting air fill his lungs, and then sank. Lance joined him soon after. He noticed how the mermaid’s eyes seemed much more hypnotizing underwater, captivating him so easily with their glow. The mermaid blew on the conch as soon as he was close to Keith, making an air bubble form around his head. He had to admit. That was pretty impressive.

Still, took him a moment before he could gather the courage to try and breathe.

“This actually works!” His voice a bit more excited that he intended it to.

Lance chuckled, “Thanks for believing in me…” he teased. He saw as Keith touched the bubble, and how amazed he was when it didn’t burst.

“Sorry to burst your bubble, Keith!” Lance couldn’t help to smirk at his own pun while Keith groaned, “But, seriously, man! We should get going before it gets too late!” He grabbed Keith’s hand, seeing from the corner of his eye how surprised he looked.

“Hey! I can swim!”

“Yeah! Yeah… I know that!” Yet Lance didn’t let him go, “But humans swim really slow! And I don’t have all day!”

_Unfortunately…_

Keith smiled, accepting the offer while striking the water with both his feet. The human admired how the cliffs spread to the depths, so deep, he couldn’t even see the bottom. Lance stopped for a brief moment, easily getting Keith’s attention, “See that hole over there?” His left hand pointed towards a crack in the rocks, while his right hand pulled Keith closer, to offer him some support. “It’s a passage for my secret cave.” he looked at the human, “The one I told you about the other day.”

“Yeah… I remember that.” Keith said eyeing the place suspiciously, “You’re going to show me around?”

“I plan to, but not today. No!” He smirked, flipping his fins and getting them both moving again, “I have something else planned!”

Yup. Lance smirked, his shiteating grin spreading across his face. Keith was starting to grow wary of that smile.

Yet the human let himself enjoy the ride. Since Lance was the one guiding him, he didn’t have to pay too much attention where he was going and could enjoy the view. Which, as a matter of fact, was dazzling.

The waters gleamed with the rays of the sun, diving to the depths until Keith lost track of them. Colorful shoals of fish were everywhere. Lance dived deeper, pulling Keith closer as he did a particularly tight curve around the underwater part of the cliffs, and soon, the human was being gifted with a much more colorful sight than schools of fish.

He stood there in awe for a moment, and took him a second to realise that Lance was ogling at him, “Pretty cool, hum?”

In front of them, a stunning coral reef spread. More colors than Keith had ever seen, melted together in a lively masterpiece. The waters also felt so much warmer.

No wonder Lance liked to explore the seafloor so much.

The mermaid got his attention again, “Come on!” He carefully pulled Keith to the reef, showing him some fish that tried to blend in with the corals and pointing out others that stand out for how extravagant they were.

Keith was smiling, and Lance enjoyed their proximity, constantly offering himself as a resting stand. The human avoided it at first, but with some particularly annoying currents constantly dragging him away, he accepted the offer, catching his breath while holding onto Lance’s shoulders.

The prince would normally place his hand around Keith’s waist as a way to help him keep upright. Keith’s looked back at Lance, eyes in a unique color that didn’t seem to match any of the corals behind him.

“Lance?”

The prince smiled, humming softly in reply.

“Lance? Are you listening to me?” Allura’s tone was soft, yet and more confused than anything else. Still, it was all it took to wake Lance from his daydreaming.

“Ahm... Yeah! Of course!” The prince offered immediately. Allura raised a brow, suspicion appearing in her features.

“Then what’s your answer?”

Lance hesitated, not really recalling most of what Allura had said.

“Is everything alright?” She looked concerned, carefully approaching her brother. Her tone had changed from the fearless ruler to the worried sister Lance had grown up used to, “Did something happen? I noticed you haven't been yourself lately.”

Somehow, deep inside, Lance was relieved that she didn't seem to know anything about his getaways to the surface. Yet, he knew his sister, and her voice told him everything. She wasn't just worried. She was upset with herself, and somehow, Lance just knew she was blaming herself for not being there. For not helping him through whatever was upsetting him.

Lance was lucky to have someone like Allura to call family, “Don't worry, sis! I’m fine!” he offered cheerfully, determined not to worry her further, “But I could be even finer if you stopped with the stupid punishment!”

She only eyed him, her gorgeous eyes studying his face carefully, “There _is_ something going on!”

It wasn't a question. And Lance immediately knew he had fucked up.

“Yeah yeah… Alright, Allura! You got me!”

“What happened?”

“Nothing happened! Everything is just fine!” his voice came out way too high.

“Not talking are you?” Her eyebrow rose, a defiant look spreading from the grin on the face, “Let’s see…”

“Oh, Allura! Come on! It's no big deal! Just drop it!”

But the other mermaid seemed very interested in figuring what was happening.

“Coran told me you have not been missing any of the appointed lessons you had marked.”

_Oh Quiznack…_

If there was something Allura was good at, was reading him. She just had the ability to pick small stuff she knew add it together and figure him out like white on black.

“The guards haven't complained about anything either…” she was mumbling to herself, yet Lance could hear her better than any other time before, his heart beating madly against his ribcage, while he tried to remain as stoic as he could.

_Don’t let her know. If she finds out I’m dead. Keith is dead. Every living soul is dead._

“Seriously, Allura… You’re making me lose my time! I need my beauty sleep. This pretty face isn't-”

“None of the maids had complained lately either…”

“-just a gift of the goddess!”

“You’ve been flirting a lot less with them lately with them, haven't you?”

_Here we go…_

“Lance,” her voice was teasing and daring, “Are you in love?”

_And I’m officially dead._

“What? Who?” Lance turned around, “Wait! You mean me?” his hand was on his chest to emphasize his point, but it only served to see how ridiculously fast his heart was beating.

“Who is she? Do I know her?”

“You're not letting me off the hook are you?”

“No!” She admitted proudly.

“It’s no big deal, really.” he said, “Besides… It was stupid and I don't want to talk about it!”

Lance saw how Allura's face twisted horridly. She knew better than anyone that many times, because of Lance's natural beauty and graciously, obviously, some girls tried to court him with hope of joining the royal family. Lance hated to lie to his sister like this. Making her believe that he had suffered from unrequited love.

But he didn't have much choice. That was the best way to make her drop the topic. And to keep her away from even dreaming about the possibility that Lance was actually falling for a mortal enemy.

As she grew quieter, Lance knew his plan had worked. They both could play this game after all. And if his sister knew him well, he wasn't exactly far behind.

Lance, gave her a small smile, “Now, what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Oh right!” She straightened, and soon her voice was coming out a lot more high and mighty, “In a couple of days a meeting to discuss some of the details about the war will be held here in the palace.”

 _Yeah... right…_  He could almost feel the eyes of the nobles on him. With luck, he could just sneak out and be with Keith during the entire meeting.

“I would love if you could join me!” Allura said with a beaming smile. Lance froze. Knowing too well the implications of Allura’s words, yet he still couldn't believe them.

“What?” he eloquently asked for her to rephrase.

“You’ll be coming of age soon and I want you to be present. The meeting will hold important decisions towards the war and to ensure the safety of our people.” Allura approached him carefully, her hand rested on Lance's shoulder making him look at her, “I know you’ve been craving to join the meetings and I truly believe that you are prepared, Lance.”

Wait. Was this really happening? This was it! This was everything he had ever asked for. A chance to prove himself.

He was so lost in his thoughts, he barely heard his sister, “Humanity opposes a treat we can no longer ignore.” Lance's eyes shot back at her, “I think it's time for us to attack!”

Lance blinked, confident he had misunderstood, “What?”

“The time has finally come, Lance. Decades ago we were unprepared and caught by surprise. But things changed. We can finally fight back and end this war for once in for all.” Lance didn't say a word. He wanted to. But he couldn't. Everything seemed to be caught in his throat. “I will not allow father and mother's death to be in vain.” She smiled radiantly, “We can and will win this war. And then our people can live and prosper in peace once more! Isn’t this great news, Lance!”

There had to be a way to stop Allura. But without knowing what she was planning, there was no point in trying to figure a plan out. Even if warn Keith was the only thing he could do, he needed to know what he had to warn him about.

“Yeah… It’s great!” He tried to sound excited but his voice came out strangled and worried.

“We can finally make the humans pay for what they've done to us…”

“So… hm… what's this plan-”

“I’m sorry, Lance. I cannot discuss that now. But I'll tell you everything about it during the meeting.” She offered sincerely, “I suppose you don't want to miss it!”

“Oh…” his voice came out a bit more sarcastic than he intended it to, “I wouldn't dare!”

 

* * *

 

Pidge closed the door of the dorm. Keith wasn't there. Again.

The petite human figured something was up. Keith didn't normally just vanishes like this. He was a loner and needed time to himself, but lately, he was never anywhere.

Pidge only met him at curfew or during classes, and if they didn't agree to meet, he would just, go. Where? Pidge had no idea. But sometimes, not having him around was rather useful.

Like right now.

 _All clear_ , the though crossed the amazing mind and soon Pidge was on the loose. In no time, the white fingers were on one of the control panels.

The small beep it made came as a blessing, and with no hesitation, the brown haired cadet entered the room.

_Empty. Just like I expected._

Commander Iverson was attending to some meeting with other officers and superiors. Pidge had wondered what sort of meeting was it, but taking into consideration the people attending to it, it was pretty obvious that some important decision regarding the war was being made.

Pidge insert a chip on the control panel, overriding the system and assuring that the only thing being broadcast from the cameras, was the image of an empty and securely protect office. After that was done, the human hurried to the computer, easily hacking into it.

 _Kerberos… Kerberos… Where is that thing_ …

Pidge took a lot more time than anticipated, ending up downloading files that had nothing to do with the Kerberos mission. Yet, the brown eyed cadet couldn't really stop every time the word _top secret_ appeared on the screen.

Information was important, and since Pidge had gone through the trouble of actually sneaking into one of the most secured offices of the facility, it came as an evident knowledge that, Pidge had to do the best of it. And in this particular case, that meant getting every tiny bit of information possible.

It was almost impossible to muffle the whine when the brown eyes read the word, _Kerberos_. Pidge smiled, anxiously fearing the worst and hopefully expecting the best.

“I’ll find you, Matt… I promise.”

 

* * *

 

“Are you done yet?” The voice came out flat and annoyed.

Lance waved him off, confirming to Keith that his torture was going to last.

“I’m having a bad day, Keith! It’s your duty as my friend to help me enjoy myself…” the mermaid explained without stopping what he was doing.

“Yeah…” Keith tried to turn around to look back at Lance but the mermaid forced his head still, hissing a complain when he moved. Keith sighed, “What does that have to do with my hair?”

“Everything!”

Keith eyed him irritated without moving his head too much, hoping his glare would force Lance to give him answers. It didn’t take him long to realise that the prince wasn't going to give him any response. Groaning, he resigned to his fate, allowing Lance to proceed with his work. The mermaid was pleased, shiteating grin spreading on his face now that Keith had turned around.

Lance would rather not talk about it. His conversation with Allura had left him restless, and the realisation, that he had to do something to stop his sister from making a mistake and attack, only sank deeper. He wanted to do something. He just wasn’t sure what he could do...

And that was why he was braiding Keith’s hair.

The soft black hair strands interlining with his fingers helped him relax and stop thinking about what he didn't want to think. Especially not in his so little time with Keith.

Lance could feel the human relax a little as he started a new small braid on the back of his head, where Keith's hair was longer. The mermaid smiled, enjoying the sight of his work being brought to life in Keith’s head. Lance couldn’t stop himself from remembering the times, when he was younger and his sister would ask his help. He hated it at first. Allura’s hair was immense, and at the slightest carelessness, he would hurt her. Yet, somehow, with time, Lance found himself enjoying that time. Allura seemed to enjoy it too because even when her maids offered to do it, she would politely refuse and ask him to do it. Of course, after his father’s death things had changed drastically, and the two siblings only split more apart.

“It better look amazing!” Lance was snapped out of his mind by Keith’s words, “Whatever the hell you're doing to my hair,” he said leaning closer to the touch, “Otherwise I’ll undo it!”

Lance forced a shocked sound out of his mouth, “You wouldn't dare!” Keith could hear the smile in his tone.

“Try me!” Keith’s head leaned closer to Lance’s fingers, just like a piece of metal being dragged towards a magnet.

Keith knew the enormous claws that spread from Lance’s fingers, yet, he could only feel the soft touch that played with his hair and on rare occasions touched his nape, sending shivers down Keith's spine.

It felt nice. So nice. He closed his eyes, enjoying the soft wind, the warm sun and the song of the waves behind him. He couldn't see the mermaid, but Keith knew he was close since the frail huffs of his breath kept reaching his neck.

Keith wondered when it had happened. When he had let Lance be so close to him, claws so close to his neck, brushing against his flesh.

The realisation struck Keith like lightning,

It wouldn't take Lance a second if he wanted to kill him.

Yet, a part of Keith couldn't bring himself to care.

He knew Lance would never hurt him and even if he had been told and taught to never allow himself to be so defenseless, Keith kept being pulled towards the warmth of Lance’s fingers.

It was a bit scary. Acknowledging how much he had come to trust him. Acknowledging that he was laying his life on Lance's hands.

The human was so distracted in his thoughts he didn't notice when the fingers left his hair, and soon after, Lance was calling him out of his mind, “Ok! All done!”

Keith jerked a little but his face remained blank, “What have you done? Exactly?” He reached for his head, but Lance stopped him.

“Don’t touch it, Keith! You’ll ruin it!” Lance chuckled at groan that escaped human’s throat, “Just see your reflection in the waters!”

And Keith did. He got up, feet sinking deeper in the warm sand as he walked towards the sea. He could see Lance from the corner of his eye, grin radius like the sun as he contemplated his masterpiece. The human sighed, not really knowing what to expect, but already fearing the worst. He leaned closer to the waters, patiently waiting for the waves to settle down, so he could focus on his reflection.

He was expecting a lot of things. But not this.

His hair was loose, small braids hanging out on the lower back of his head and close to his ears. He tried to see how Lance had tied them to stop them from undoing themselves, but he really couldn't make it out. His eyes looked up, noticing how something spread across his forehead. His widened, when he finally saw what laid there.

Spreading, slyly across his black hair, Lance had gifted him with a crown of red and white shells. They were somehow linked together, but then again, Keith had no idea how.

He could feel his neck burning up, and soon a crimson trail spread across his cheeks.

“I’m taking it off!” He declared abruptly, desperate to hide his embarrassment.

“Keith, no!” Lance whined, “Come on! I had so much trouble making it!” The human made the grave mistake of looking back. The mermaid's eyes seemed to be trembling, and his face was frowning sadly.

Keith's heart skipped a beat, and he soon knew he had lost the fight.

“Ok! Fine!” He looked away, face burning up again, “But I’m getting my revenge for this!”

Lance laughed, and the sound ranging through Keith's ears made him look towards the mermaid. “I haven't forgotten how you tickled me to death!” he teased,  “We're at least even now!”

Keith was smiling, lost in Lance's ocean like eyes and the silvery grin that always made weird things to his stomach.

“Besides,” Lance continued, “It looks good on you!” The prince grinned, winking in Keith’s direction.

The black haired teen froze, mind racing as fast as his heartbeat. He saw the pleased look on the mermaid’s face, and how he started to laugh harder. Keith couldn't really mind. Lance's blue eyes were beautiful when he laughed, matching perfectly with the shades of the scales that trailed to his pointy ear. The marks under his eyes always seemed to lit up a bit, glowing ever so lightly.

Lance _was_ always beautiful. But somehow he was even prettier every time he laughed. Keith loved how his expression softened, how his cheeks grew darker and how is hair danced with the wind when he threw his head back.

He wanted to make sure Lance would always keep that contagious smile. He hated how sad he looked when they met early today. The desire to punch whoever had made him sad tickling under his skin. But when he asked if Lance wanted to talk about it, the mermaid shook his head quietly and rapidly opted to play with Keith's hair, making sure their faces weren't meeting. Keith figured he shouldn't push him. So he didn’t.

Violet eyes rose again, the embarrassment long forgotten, and only now Keith noticed that Lance also had shells in his hair. The devious sucker had the whole thing planned for sure. But Keith didn't care. Lance looked a lot better now, and that was what mattered.

He couldn't bring himself to stop gazing at the mermaid. The prince looked even more dazzling today, blue and purple shells splashed across his brown hair. Keith had come to notice that Lance always wore something on his head, sometimes even jewelry in his arms or tail. It matched him and only made him look more dazzling, even though the human never pointed out. Keith’s eyes stopped abruptly, finding the necklace that always hanged near his collarbone.

For some reason, he had always seen Lance with that particular jewelry, and before he could process, he was already speaking, “What’s that?”

Lance stopped laughing, looking back at the human confused, “What’s what?”

Keith reached for the jewelry, tugging it softly which caught Lance a bit off guard, “This.”

The human could see the exact moment Lance's face twisted, and how his mouth mimicked a small o when he realised what Keith was talking about.

The prince reached for the crystal, softly holding it in his hand like something far too precious, “It was from my mother…” his voice was soft and weak, making Keith immediately regret asking, “It’s the only thing I have from her.” He smiled, blue eyes meeting violet ones, “She died when I was very young. I don't remember much, but I know she gifted me with this necklace when I was born and I could never bring myself to take it off…” Keith found himself hesitating, breath stuck in his throat, while he bit his bottom lip, and wondered if he should apologize.

He tried to, but before words could form, Lance's lips were moving again, “I like it,” a sweet smile tucking on the corners of his lips, “Keeps her close, you know?”

Keith could only smile back, “I’m sure she was amazing…”

“Yeah. When I was younger, Coran used to tell me about her. Apparently, she was a bit like me, you know?” He laughed, probably remembering something, “I wish I could have spent more time with her. I don't even remember what she looked like, or what her voice sounded like…” Every time Lance's voice cracked, Keith could feel something shatter in his chest. He should be punching himself for taking away Lance’s smile.

Lance sighed, catching his breath before he could continue. He never talked about his mother, but for some reason, he really wanted to tell Keith about her, “She was around my age when the war began, so before that time, she used to come a lot to the surface.” Lance laughed, “Apparently my father didn't find it amusing.”

“Sounds familiar…” Keith softly teased, careful not to push too far.

Lance beamed, taking the commentary like it was the best compliment anyone had ever told him, “I know!” Keith couldn't really regret his question when a soft yet dazzling smile spread across the prince’s face. “And she was awesome! One of the most powerful mermaids history ever heard off! But even though she had all this power she never hurt anyone even when the war began decafeebs ago.”

Keith blinked softly, something very intriguing poking him. The war had started _centuries_ ago and if Lance’s mother was alive before the war began, how long did mermaids really lived?

“How old are you?” The question came out slightly more twisted than he intended it to, but he wasn’t going to chickening out now.

Lance eyed him suspiciously, “I’m seventeen… Why?”

“Years? Like human years?” Now things were getting confusing.

“I think so…” Lance was raising a brow while he looked at his fingers. “A year is 12 lunar cycles!”

Keith was the one raising an eyebrow now, “Which is?”

“Hmm… Lunar cycle is the time that it takes to the moon to be full again!”

“Ok. So it _is_ a month. Or pretty close to anyway.”

Lance was peering at him confused, “So… It's the same as human years?”

“Yeah… I guess so…” Keith hesitated, “How long do mermaid live. You said your mother was alive before the war began? But that's impossible the war has been going on for centuries!”

“What?” Lance spit out, instinctively moving forward, “What are you talking about?” Keith looked as confused as him, “You mean this actual war? It started like 100 years ago. Probably less.”

Blue eyes looked at purple ones, both confused and survived. Keith had always heard that the war between humans and mermaids existed since the primordials of time. It was a never ending war that only recently humans had won the upper hand on.

“This makes no sense!” Keith was the first one to process.

“Tell me about it. You sure you humans know how to count time?”

“No… no… Not that. Even if there is a difference between our years and your years, there's no possible way there could be over a century gap going on.”

“Tell me about it…”

“Are you sure about this?”

“Like I told you I don't know the exact date but…”

It had to be _them._ It’s always them. The garrison controls everything, if they had lied about the whole _mermaid prey on humans_ thing, why not add a couple of centuries to this war.

“Why are they making this up…”

“Oh come, Keith! You're not gonna start!” Lance protested annoyed, half expecting him to begin with his conspiracy theories.

The human rolled his eyes, “I’m not joking. They're hiding something!”

“Well, it is a pretty big gap…” Blue eyes looked over to Keith, observing as his face frowned when he thought, “It is pretty weird. You think they made it up?”

“Definitely! But why? It makes no sense! What would they win by making the war seem older than it is?”

Lance really hated where the conversation was going. He hated seeing how Keith always seemed so oblivious about the details of the war. How the garrison seemed to be fabricating information even to their own soldiers. Everything sounded like a maze of lies, and that, always made Lance think that just like Keith, many more humans were being deceived.

And now, he couldn't bring his mind out off what Allura had told him. She wanted to attack. Retaliate. Win the war and protect what their father had built. He knew she had a point. He knew she had all the motives to want to attack. But every time he saw Keith so confused, trying to decipher what was really going on, he couldn't bring himself to think as humanity as an enemy. Well, at least not humanity as a whole.

They seemed far more fragmented than he thought they would be. Nothing like Altea. And, if humans were being manipulated by someone… Then...

“This war is stupid!” Lance said startling Keith. The human only looked at him. Oh! He knew that look. Lance was about to say something very, very, very stupid. “We should stop the war, Keith! Tell everyone the truth… And then? Then we'll be heroes and be turned into stars!”

Keith chortled, and Lance protested, whining offended, “I’m serious!”

The violet eyes were beaming with amusement, but something fragile and almost scared lingered there, “I’m sure you’d have a pretty good shot at it. Being a prince and all… But me? Lance! I'm a no one. Not a single soul would ever believe me if I told them mermaids are not our enemies!”

“You make that sound like it would be a piece of cake for me!”

Keith rose up, making Lance jerk at his sudden movement. He took a couple of steps back before starting, voice high and mighty in a lame attempt to make an impression of him, “Listen to me citizens of Altea!” Lance’s eyes shot back at him.

“What are you doing, Keith?”

Keith ignored the mermaid, “I am prince Lance of Altea, and upon months- No,” he cursed under his breath, “Upon lunar cycles facing mighty dangers I’ve come to realise something far too important to be ignored.”

“What are you doing?” Lance’s voice was higher than normal, “First, I don't sound like that! And what are you doing with my arms?”

Keith repeated the movement with a teasing smile.

“I don't do that!” Lance protested.

Keith snorted, “You just did!”

“No, I didn't!” Lance raised furrowed his eyebrows defensively.

The human chuckled, but soon his face was stoic again, “Like I was saying… I've learned an unsettling truth! Something that can no longer be ignored.” Lance and resigned to his fate, observing the terrible impression, “Humanity is not a threat...” Keith paused, making Lance’s eyebrow raise in anticipation, “... My flirting skills are!”

“Keith, you ass!”

The human burst to laughter, falling backward without being able to keep his balance. He paid no mind to the sudden pain in his rear, crackling more at Lance’s reaction than his own joke. Lance complained, “First… I don't sound like that! Second, my flirting skills _are a blessing_ from the goddess.”

The human remained on the white sand laughing for a solid minute. His giggles softened lazily and when he had gathered enough strength to sit up again, Lance was already next to him, quietly staring at the horizon. Keith stiffened at how serious Lance could actually look sometimes. The atmosphere shifted between the two of them, and the violet eyes waited patiently.

“When I was younger, I really wanted to join the army,” Lance spoke carefully, eyes looking forwards towards his home, “I wanted to get out there and fight! Make the difference!” His voice tightened, “But I was never allowed to…”

“Was it because of hmm,” Keith went unexpectedly quiet when Lance looked at him. An ocean of emotions swam in his eyes, and Keith found his violet orbs looking away. He shouldn't have asked that.

“Yeah…” Lance was still looking at him. Keith couldn't face him, but he could feel the blue eyes on him, “I couldn't join because, one, I was a prince, and two, I couldn't use altean magic.” By the time he stopped talking he had lifted two fingers.

“I was really mad. I wanted to fight for my people but all I could do was stay in my room. I found myself hating the army, and its stupid soldiers and my stupid father. I was pissed and I wanted to retaliate.”

Their eyes met again, as Lance’s lips stopped moving. He took a deep breath, “I was really young… Now I know how immature I was being. My father was so mad.”

“What did you do?”

“I started sneaking out of the castle on adventures.”

Keith was chuckled silently, “Yeah… right! Why didn’t I guess that...”

“I’m serious, Keith! You have no idea how hard it is to actually sneak out of a castle unless you try it!”

Keith lifted his hands in a surrendering gesture, “I believe you!”

“You better believe!” He let himself fall into Keith's lap. He felt Keith stiffening for a slim second, before relaxing again. “That's how I started to explore sunken ships and ancient ruins.”

“I see… Lance of Altea, the Rebellious Prince.”

The mermaid peered upwards, eyeing Keith annoyed, “Joke all you want.” but Keith could hear the teasing in his voice, “I ended up playing myself, though. Before I knew I couldn't stop.” Lance was smiling and Keith hadn't really noticed when his hand decided to lay on Lance’s hair, “I loved everything about it. There was so much more than it met the eye. Every single discovery told a different story about a whole different world there was out there.” Keith's hand started to move, playing with Lance's locks as he proceeded, “Of course my father found out. And I was put under the constant watch of guards and security. Only later I learned that he was only trying to protect me. He feared something similar to my mother's death could happen to me.”

Keith’s felt his chest tighten a bit at the sound of Lance's voice. Every time, the mermaid spoke of his mother, his voice when completely different and Keith always felt like he was hearing something that he wasn't supposed to listen.

But he was supposed to listen. Lance wanted him to. “At the time I didn't really know that. So I was mad. I was just so mad that my father wouldn't let me do the one thing I liked the most.”

Keith hesitated when Lance stopped, not sure he should say anything. Not sure if he could say anything, “Lance…”

“I wish I had more time to explore it all,” he was smiling weakly at Keith, his right hand rising to play with one of the human's little braids he had made, “I love how warm the sun feels on my skin. The difference in temperature in the deeper and surface waters. It sends chills down my back. It makes me feel alive!” He was smiling. A grin so true and beautiful, “I wish I could learn more about humans and your world!”

“I can teach you more…” Keith only noticed he was speaking when he heard his own voice, “I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

Lance smiled. Grateful for the offer, but Keith could see the blue in his eyes, “Thank you, Keith.” His voice was sincere and somehow grateful, “But things are not so simple. I’m a prince, you know. I’ll be coming of age soon… And I’ll have duties to attend to. I’m expected to stay in Altea, help my sister, marry with the child of some noble.” He sighed, “I’ll have to stay down there like some prisoner.”

“Lance…” Blue eyes shot up, staring back at the purple ones. Keith was quietly looking at him, eyes sadly eyeing him. _Shit… I said too much_! He hated how wistful Keith looked. The way his eyebrows furrowed and how the gorgeous eyes stared back at him, filled with sorrow. He wanted to see those violet eyes shining, see a soft smile and hear the ringing sound of his laugh.

The mermaid relaxed more, hands dramatically falling to linger close to his head, “Save me, Keith!” he almost shouted, dragging an unexpected chuckle out of the human. Well, Keith had not expected the sudden change in the prince’s behaviour, but, even tho blue matched Lance, he preferred to see him laughing with his cheeks painted in crimson from grinning so hard.

“You could live in my bathtub…” He teased, and was rewarded with Lance’s incredulously staring back at him, “What?”

“I’m actually not sure if you're joking or not!”

He laughed, “I _was_ joking.” Keith eyed Lance teasingly, “You probably couldn't fit your whole tail in there, anyway!”

“I’m shocked, Keith!” He dropped his hand on his chest for a more dramatic effect, “Don't you live in the human army facility thing!” He semi closed his eyes, “You're trying to take me to my death!”

Keith smirked, “I was thinking about my parents’ house close to the desert… Since I’m legally an adult, it’s technically mine again!”

“I feel like you’re low key trying to kidnap me!”

Lance was grinning again, “I have no idea what made you think that!”

“If you’re trying to get a ransom out of Allura… Take that out of your mind, she wouldn’t give you a gag!”

Keith couldn't stop the smile tucking in the corner of his mouth. Lance’s smile just made him feel happy. _Everything_ about Lance made him feel so happy, from his stupid perfect grin to his ridiculous jokes. He would do anything just to keep the smile on Lance’s face.

The mermaid was looking back at the violet eyes, teasingly, “Seriously, Keith! If you _do_ kidnap me, remember that mermaids can’t survive without seawater.” The violet orbs widened, and the prince could see how Keith’s lips mumbled a small, ‘ _you can’t?_ ’ under his breath. Lance fought the giggle forming in the back of his throat, “Not for long, no!” he explained with a serious face, “We’re literally connected to the sea! It’s our home! Tanks with water are not just an annoyingly small prison. It’s literally like running out of air. Dying slowly!”

“Ok, ok! I get! No bathtub!” Keith had raised his right eyebrow as he spoke, observing as Lance eyed him suspiciously. There was just a slim moment of silence between them, before both cracked into laughter. “And it’s not kidnapping if you come with me willingly.”

Keith froze, face burning at the sound of his own voice, _What the hell am I saying?_

Hopefully, Lance seemed too absorbed in his own laughter to notice Keith’s embarrassment.

The sun lazily hid behind the horizon, reflecting blending shades from blue to purple to the burning reds and oranges of the sun. Keith saw as the colors caught Lance’s eyes. It was getting late and he probably had to leave soon.

Time always seemed to fly when he wanted it to stay still.

It was a beautiful afternoon. A warm wind blew Keith’s bangs away. He closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the wind’s soft thuds on his arms and the melody of the sea. The seagulls, the waves, the wind. Everything came together in a song that softly became, more and more familiar.

Something different joined the old song. A new element that had Keith opening his eyes and looking towards his right, where Lance sat next to him. The mermaid’s eyes were on the sunset, his lips only slightly parted, allowed a soft melody to leave.

Lance only hummed for a moment, his voice barely audible above the crash of the waves or the whistles of the wind. Keith’s violet eyes closed again, focusing on the melody next to him. The voice was familiar somehow, and the human found himself wondering if he had ever heard Lance sing before.

With time, the mermaid’s hums grew slightly louder, ripping a small smile on Keith’s lips. Lance’s voice was beautiful. It rang through his whole body, warming his face and making his heart pound faster. The prince smiled, eyes lost to the sky, “It’s beautiful…”

“Yeah…” Keith agreed. But he wasn’t looking at the sunset.

Silence grew between sea and land for a slim moment. Keith’s violet eyes never left Lance’s figure as he mermaid continued to sing. Something was stuck in his throat. Something that spread from his chest, burning so deeply, just to leave him breathless.

Keith didn’t understand a lot of things. But something was very clear in his mind.

_This is fine…_

Being with Lance. Making him laugh. Listening to his ridiculous adventures.

He loved every second of it, and he didn’t want it to end. No, that was not it. Maybe he was being selfish. Maybe he should just keep his instincts in check. But he wanted more.

He wanted to know more about Lance. Learn what made him laugh, what made him doubt himself. He wanted to know his voice by memory, to have his grin forever imprinted in his mind. He wanted more. So much more.

He wanted-

“My mother used to sing this when I was younger…” Keith blinked, Lance’s voice dragging him out of his thoughts.

“It’s beautiful…” he said sincerely. Lance looked at him surprised. He too had noticed Keith’s voice sounded different, “The melody,” Keith could feel his face burning up, “...and your voice too.”

“Thank you!” Lance beamed, making Keith’s blood run cold.

_You… I want you…_

“I barely remember anything about my mother…” Blue eyes came to look at Keith, “But somehow, I knew every note to that song… It’s almost ridiculous. Pretty stupid of me, right?”

“No, it’s not.” the voice was soft, “Don’t say that…” Keith’s hand found its way to Lance’s cheek, fingers brushing softly the mark under his eyes.

_You’re not ridiculous._

_You’re amazing._

_I love you._

Keith wanted to speak. Yet every word he wanted to say seemed to get stuck in the back of his throat. He could feel his heartbeat speed up, and for a moment, he wondered if Lance could hear it too.

“Hey…” Keith called him, and was immediately gifted with the ocean looking back at him, “I want to tell you something important…” The words came out aimlessly. He couldn't breathe. Heart pounding so fast.

This was a terrible idea. What if Lance didn’t like him?

He bit his own lip, feeling the tightness in his chest.

Lance was a prince. He had so much more down there than Keith could ever give him. He just wanted Lance to smile. He didn’t want scare him away and make him go. He didn’t want to be alone. Again.

Maybe he should just keep it all inside. Whatever it was that he was feeling. If he ignored, he could still see Lance every day, hear him, tease him. Nothing would change. He wouldn’t get anything, but he also wouldn’t lose anything.

And sometimes,

what you can lose is so much more than what you could win.

But Keith was never good at keeping his instincts in check, “Lance?”

“Yeah?” The mermaid’s eyes had never left his own. Staring at him so intensely, like he could see down to the deepest part of his soul.

Keith leaned close enough to feel Lance’s breath on his face. “Close your eyes…” he whispered, resting his forehead on Lance’s.

Keith’s hand softly went to the back of Lance’s neck, tilting his head lightly, before kissing him tenderly. He felt his own eyes close, too heavy too keep them open, as the taste of the ocean swam in his lips.

“Wh-” Lance’s eyes opened in surprise, as he pushed Keith away, “WHat are you doing?” he asked now that is lips weren’t captive.

Keith saw confusing and surprise in the blue eyes he loved so much. He was sure his heart stopped beating.

Of course.

_He doesn’t like me back..._

Why would Lance like him… They were so different. Opposites, even. Land and Sea. Fire and Ice. It was stupid of him to think, that maybe, just maybe he had a chance.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” Keith’s voice stabbed knifes into Lance’s chest, “I’m sorry.”

_Stupid… Stupid… Stupid…_

Keith got up, not really sure what to do. Leaving was the only thing he could think off. Leaving was the best option. Just go.

But he couldn't go.

Lance hand reached for his arm, stopping him in his toes.

Keith couldn't look at him. He wished he could just go back time and stop himself from kissing Lance.

It was a mistake. A mistake that would cost him too much.

“Keith?” Lance’s eyes were on him, eyebrows furrowed in worry, “Are you listening? What is going on? What was that?” Keith felt himself bombarded by questions, but the last one called his attention, “Is that a human thing?”

Keith eyes widened, and now he was glad he was facing away from Lance. His face was burning, _Stupid mermaid society._

No wonder Lance looked so surprised when Keith tried to kiss him. Who wouldn't be surprise if someone just shoved his lips on your lips for no reason.

Keith wanted to dig a hole and bury himself.

“It’s nothing… Forget about it!” But he still couldn't face Lance.

The mermaid pouted annoyed, “It _is_ something! Keith! You said you’d tell me everything I wanted to know!”

Oh, he did. Not even an hour ago.  And he was regretting it tremendously by now.

“Lance… just drop it…” he had screwed up once. Getting his hopes up just to be rejected again, was not a game he enjoyed to play.

“Come on, Keith!” Lance’s grip on the human's arm tightened, as he pulled Keith back to the sand next to him. He grabbed his face between both his hands and stared right into the human's eyes. “Please… Tell me!”

“It's ahm…” Keith knew he was blushing madly, eyes desperately trying to avoid Lance’s, but the mermaid didn't let him escape. Keith took a deep breath.

_Patience Yields Focus_

“It’s a kiss.” Keith said firmly. He saw Lance arch a brow in a silent attempt to get a better explanation. Another deep breath. “Humans… We ahm…” His beating heart was pounding madly again.

_It's something humans do to show how important someone is to them_

_and that they would do anything to see them smile_

_and that they love them with all their hearts..._

“It’s a…” he looked away again, “Humans do that when they _care_ a lot for someone!”

The eyebrow arched harder, “Like a friend thing?”

“Oh seriously, Lance! You're going to be the death of me!” Keith violet eyes looked at the mermaid, “It’s not a friend thing. It’s more...”

“Oh…” Lance went unexpectedly quiet, which was new.

The tightness had returned to his heart, struggling his chest more with every second Lance took to speak. It felt like hours, the time he stayed there, face to face with Lance, heart pounding, face burning. Avoiding his eyes. Looking at them for an answer. Avoiding them again.

“It’s pretty cool that humans have a _way_ to express their _feelings_ without using words _.”_

Keith knew that the message had gone across, yet, the answer was not yes, nor no.

 _I should have left._ He started to rise back to his feet. Lance probably needed time to clear his mind. It was also getting late. He should have just left. He should have just left. He should have never even dared to think about kissing Lance. He should have never-

“Keith!” The human was back on the sand, thanks to Lance’s pull again. He noticed how the mermaid had some trouble making eye contact with him. Not that he minded. Right now, he didn’t mind at all. “Can you…” The voice came out uncertain. Almost scared. Keith noticed the trail of crimson near the altean marks, or how his fangs bit so hard his bottom lip, almost drawing blood. “Can you do that again?”

Keith’s heart skipped a beat, face lighting up, a soft smile slowly spreading on his lips.

How could he say no to that adorable dork?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally halfway through the fanfic and the 4k updates slowly turned into 8k... *sweats nervously* may this compensate that one chapter that will probably not reach 4k.  
>  Also, my friend's birthday is today so here is an _extra gay _chapter just for him! Hope you liked it, dude ;)__ Thank you so much for reading! I hope you're enjoying this AU as much as I am.  
>  The feedback has been so much more than I first anticipated, and this makes me super happy!  <3  
>  Thank you so much for all the kudos, bookmarks, subs and for all the lovely comments! You guys are awesome!  
>    
>  **EDIT: So I had a really busy week and I have not been able to finish chapter 7 on time. I really like it and I'd rather take a bit more time to write than half-ass the thing just to publish it on time. Sorry about it guys. Chapter 7 will be out next Saturday (9 September) and might get close to 10k. We'll see. ******


	7. Chapter 7

“What?” Lance turned to his friend, slightly annoyed at the face he was making. 

Hunk didn't say anything, only raising an eyebrow and looking at Lance, questioning.

“What do you mean, _what_?” The yellow tailed mermaid mimicked Lance’s tone before looking at him with a face that said he just _knew too much_ , “I should be the one asking you that, buddy! You're not deceiving anyone with that grin !” 

Lance peered at his friend but as Hunk's knowing smile spread across his face, the prince found himself looking away, “Shut up,” he mumbled embarrassed.

“Awww, Lance!” Hunk teased, “What happened? Was it your boyfriend?”

“He is _not_ my boyfriend!” Lance offered instinctively. Hunk saw as his friend’s face burned hotter, and how he started to trail off, “Ok… Maybe…” Lance didn't need to say anything else because Hunk had already realised it.

“Oh Goddess! I knew it!” Hunk was ecstatic, “At first I was like, nah maybe not man. But then the other day you showed up all hearts and flowers,” Lance was staring at him wondering how he could say all that without stopping to breathe, “And _I just knew_ something had happened!”

“Ok. Fine…” Lance wasn't going to argue. Not when Hunk had activated the _'I told you so’_ mode, “You're right… I’m dating Keith!”

“Oh! I knew it!”

Hunk was about to start rambling again, but the prince stopped him before he could,

“Yeah. Yeah. I get it, Hunk!” 

“You're introducing him to me right, buddy?” 

“Ahm... Yeah? Maybe one day!” Lance chuckled, swallowing his nerves, “It's all very recent and all… I don't… I don't uh… want to push too early…” the prince offered, and the yellow tailed mermaid seemed to comply.

But his silence didn't last long, “So… How was it?”

“How was what?” 

“How was the thing? You asked him out? Or was it him? And how? And where? I want to know everything, man!” 

Lance chuckled, “Ok. Ok. I get!” He had just gotten back from the _meeting_ , and something that could get it out of his mind was much welcomed. So he accepted the distraction. “It happened some days ago,” he started, “We were meeting at the usual place, just um… hanging out like usual…” Lance couldn't stop himself from remembering it. How Keith’s hand softly lingered on his face. So careful. Like Lance was the most precious thing he had ever touched. He was sure he was smiling, but he didn't even try to hide it anymore. He heard his friend mumble a weak, 'aaand?’ He didn't even think twice, “and we just kissed.”

Taking into consideration that kissing Keith had become almost a routine to Lance in the past few days, he didn't even realise how wrong it sounded to Hunk until he saw the other mermaid’s face. That's when Lance knew he had made his first mistake.

_Oh… No. Nononononono no! Things were going way too well for my big mouth to screw it all._

His mind was screaming for Lance to make something up before Hunk could puzzle the pieces together.

He could have offered a thousand different explanations but something made him stop. Maybe it was the things he had heard on the meeting. Maybe it was just the fact that Lance wanted to stop this war.

He knew, that for that, he had to show mermaids that humans weren't bad. Or at least not so bad. More like, not as bad as they were told. 

Point was, if Lance was going to convince anyone that humanity wasn't the enemy and that humans were nice and sweet, he had to start somewhere.

And so, mistake number two was made.

“Lance, what’s kissing?” 

“Hunk… come here.” Lance offered, patting on his bed, for his friend to come sit next to him. The yellow tailed mermaid was reluctant at first, mumbling a few, 'this can't be good, if it's some quiznacking intimate shit I’d rather not know!’

Lance half chuckled at that, wondering if he should really tell Hunk the truth. “I don't think there's any way to tell you this without you freaking out… But please, try to not freak out!” 

“Lance you're officially scaring me! What happened? Did he do something to you tha-”

“Hunk! Keith is a human!” He burst out without ever stopping to stare at his friend's face, studying Hunk’s face anxiously. 

“Oh! Oh, you got me! Nice one, Lance!” He half laughed, but when his eyes looked at the serious blue ones he felt his blood run cold, “Wait… Are you serious? Lance are you insane! Oh! I knew that name was weird but I just didn't- I can't believe you! How could you just...?”

“Hunk…” 

“Remember when I said you had my support on this?” He shot Lance a look, “I take that! Abort mission! I don't even know why I defended you! Now your sister will kill me! I'm an accomplice! I'm going to be thrown into prison to rot till the day of my execution!”

“Hunk…”

Lance spotted how his friend’s face twisted into a frown like he was trying to puzzle all the pieces together, “Wait?! Did he threaten you? Hurt you? I’m sure he would try to kidnap you if he ever learned you're a prince!”

“Hunk… Keith never di-”

“Human’s are hostile and selfish, Lance! You could have been hurt! I should have know… I can’t believe I let this happen, I should have st-” 

“Hunk!” Lance had both hands on his shoulders, holding him still while staring at his brown eyes. “Can you just _let me_ explain?”

“Explain? Explain what? That you've broken all the rules, for what?”

“Hunk, buddy! Just hear me out! After, I'll hear all the lectures you have to tell me, but please, just listen to me!”

And Hunk did. He carefully paid attention to his friend as Lance told him everything from the beginning.

He told him how he meet Keith and how scared he was at first. He told how their second meeting went and how they slowly started to learn more and more about each other. He told Hunk about the first time Keith opened up to him, and how he found himself unable to keep his mouth shut about his own insecurities. He told his friend how their relationship just grew to be something more. 

“And you believe in him? That whole story sounds fishy, Lance.”

“I would put my hand in liquid fire for him!”

“Goddess, Lance! No need to go that far. I get it… But even if Human-Keith isn't bad, that doesn't change the fact that they were the ones that started this war!”

“But that's exactly the problem, you see! Someone out there just made them believe that mermaid preyed on humans, so the humans think they're defending themselves from us!”

“Oh man, Lance! That's disgusting! I'll puke right here if you say that again.” 

“Yeah… you’re right.”

“About it being disgusting?”

“About you _puking_!” The prince teased.

“That's low, man!” Hunk elbowed him, “But are you sure Human-Keith didn't lie about that? He could be lying to you-”

"He didn't," Lance said firmly. He could see Keith's confused face in the back of his mind, desperately searching for answers. "He isn't lying, Hunk! There's something going on."

“Ok…” Hunk looked at Lance’s blue eyes, studying the certainty in his features, “So this whole war is a mess…” he said holding up a finger, “Got that part. But how exactly are you planning to stop this?” Lance looked away. “You just got out of a room filled with nobles and royalty, so you know better than I that things are being set for mermaids to attack. If that happens humans will only see us as a threat.” 

“I have to talk with Allura…” Lance sulked, resting his chin on one hand, “I have no idea how I’m gonna tell her.”

“I think the answer to your question is, _speaking_. But I can guarantee you that you’ll be getting out of it alive.” 

“Even if she does listen… She’ll be mad.”

“You’re a dead fish.” 

“You might be right this time…” Lance dramatically fell to his bed, “I'm going to need your help, bud.”

Hunk waved his hand over Lance’s face, “My help? My help! For what? Do you even have a plan?”

“Maybe I do…”

“ _Lance…”_

“Maybe I don’t…”

“I swear to the goddess, Lance! You’re gonna get me killed!”

“I’m still thinking about it, Hunk. I still have some time. But I _just know_ I have to do something. Like I can feel it, you know. It’s the right thing. Allura wouldn’t want to hurt innocent people, and I’m worried clueless humans and merpeople are getting dragged into a war that could be just one huge misunderstanding.”

“Yeah. Ok. I get you, buddy.” Hunk peered a look at Lance, “But you can’t forget that _there are_ humans that are dead set on trying to kill us. Even if it is not all of them, _they exist._ And if humans get their hand on the-” 

“I know that, Hunk!” he protested defensively. His voice died out, mumbling as small as knowingly, “I know…”

Lance saw his friend’s mouth open up, but before he could speak, the blue tailed mermaid started, “I have to think about this carefully. But I’m definitely not going to just stand by and do nothing!”

“That’s really brave of you, buddy. But I'd rather stay away from the action.” Hunk looked at Lance dead in the eyes, “And you should too.”

Blue eyes looked away. He knew what Hunk was implying, and he didn’t like where the conversation was going.

“Yeah. Ok.” Lance waved him off, “So I’ve been thinking…”

“I can almost smell the bad news coming for me…” 

“Do you like, hmm,” Lance trailed off, not even paying attention to what his friend

had said, “Do you want to meet Keith?”

“WHat?” Hunk gasped, eyes blown wide in his face. “Are you crazy! Are you going insane? No! Ohh I get it! You’re trying to kill me!”

“Hunk, I’m serious!” he grinned playfully, “Keith is not going to do anything to you.”

“No! Nonono! And No! Is that clear enough?” Hunk waved his hand in front of Lance’s face, “I’m not going anywhere near the surface, and I’m not going anywhere near a human. Even if it is human-Keith!”

“Ok, big guy! First! We’re not going to the surface. You could meet him in my cave, and that’s technically underwater.”

“There’s a giant air pocket in it!”

“Still underwater, though bud.” He enjoyed as Hunk’s face scrunched up to consider it.

“Second. Yeah Keith might be human, but he won't hurt you. And you’d see what I mean when I say that _humans aren’t that bad_.”

“I’m pretty sure _they are_!”

“Huuunk!” Lance's eyes looked sadly at the bigger mermaid, “Come on, bud.” he pleaded sadly.

“No, Lance!” he averted his eyes, eyebrows raising up slightly, “You know that look won't work on me!”

“Pleeaase! Don’t you trust me?”

“Sometimes I wonder why I’m your friend…” he sighed, groaning in defeat, “Ok! Fine! You win this one!”

“Yes!” Lance's arms flew up in victory.

“But you better help me sneak some snacks from the kitchen first!”

“Deal!” Lance shouted fist bumping his friend.

 

* * *

 

It was just past midday when Keith finally reached the tunnels that lead to the beach. For once, he was grateful for the humidity and cold air currents that resided there. Today was absolutely _scorching_. The weather was so hot he wondered how he hadn't melted yet. His eyes came to notice the path that led to the beach but he ignored it, following the one that seemed to go deeper into the tunnel cave. 

He had agreed to visit Lance's secret cave, that, according to him, could only be reached from underwater. But Keith had a different plan. He had seen the dimension of the tunnels and according to Lance's description of the place, there was a slight chance that one of them could lead there. 

And with luck, it would be a dry one.

Even tho, Keith had completely adored swimming with Lance, he still prefered to avoid that particular situation. The reason was simple Taking into consideration how he almost got caught last time, he figured, finding a dry path would be worth his time.

He could hear water running from afar as he explored the lower tunnels. The path was irregular and constantly demanded Keith to pay attention, but even so, the raven haired teen found himself remembering what Pidge had told him that morning.

 _I'm not sure when,_ his petite roommate said, eyeing him from the top bed on the bowling, _But something big is about to happen, Keith._

Kerberos was the first thing that crosses his mind at the moment. That was one of the biggest and most important missions to date. And the results had been catastrophic.

_The higher ups have been meeting for a couple of days now, and I'm sure they're deciding the details of some big mission._

Keith wanted to learn more, but that was pretty much all that Pidge knew. They were cadets and confidential information was something hard to reach. If a big mission was indeed about to happen, they would never learn what it was all about. Best case scenario they would know who was gonna be sent on the mission.

Just like Kerberos.

Keith had felt that something was off then. He tried to approach Shiro and talk to him, maybe learn what this whole Kerberos was about. But Shiro assured him it was fine, that Iverson was making a big movie out of a simple mission. Keith could still remember how his face writhed into a frown, or feel Shiro’s ghostly hand on his shoulder as he said, _It ok. Don't worry. I'll tell you everything once we get back._

But that had never happened. And probably never would.

Both he and Pidge, were still looking for clues. But everything they seemed to find never made much sense. It had been almost two months, and still, no answers had been found. Pidge learned other interesting stuff and shared them with Keith, like the most recent discovery in one of the top secret facilities. 

A dim glow called Keith out of his mind, smudging his thoughts into nothingness. He looked forward, coming across a dazzling view. In front of him, the narrowed trail opened into a much larger and beautiful environment. The rocky walls were covered in colourful crystals, so small, that only their sparkling nature made them noticeable.

In one side of the cave, there was a lake like body of water. Keith eyed it carefully, noticing how the waters seemed to sparkle in a thousand different shades, sometimes. It was breathtaking. 

He crossed the straight passage that led into the place, dropping on the dry rocks that surrounded the lagoon.

It was strange, but the place felt almost familiar. He knew he had never been there before, but for some reason, this place just screamed Lance everywhere.

“Lance?” he called, still looking around at his surroundings in awe. The mermaid appeared suddenly forcing Keith to take a couple of steps back, caught by surprise.

“Why do you have the need to do that?” he asked while his left hand reached for his chest. Lance chuckled, and soon his signature grin spread across his face.

“It's your fault, Keith! For looking adorably cute when you get startled!”

If that specific line was meant to embarrass Keith, it had worked. He offered a small, “yeah right,” before walking away, taking off his jacket and belt, and dropping them on a rock close to the other edge.

Lance’s eyes followed the human carefully, studying Keith from behind, and enjoying the view. He had been wearing the usual attire, even though Lance had already seen him with the garrison uniform a couple of times. If his good looks were blessing number one from the goddess, then Keith’s tight jeans were definitely blessing number two.

He saw as Keith took his boats off too, bending slightly to do so. “Oh goddess, have mercy on my soul,” Lance mumbled under his breath. His blue eyes decided to travel up, just to be met by Keith's ponytail.

If Lance wasn't a goner then, he was now. He could practically feel his neck burn warmer.

He mumbled another prayer to the goddess as he studied Keith's exposed neck, and before he could blush more, he decided to intervene, “So… What do you think?” Lance spun around himself, gesturing the cave as Keith approached him once more, “Pretty cool, hum?”

“It's ok…” Keith offered with a barely noticeable edge of a teasing tone.

“It's ok?” The mermaid repeated in a higher voice than usual. He swam towards Keith, resting an elbow on the edge of the lake, “I’ve traveled the seas, explored his most exquisite places, and I assure you that none of them will reach pass the lower fin of this place!” He looked at Keith's violet eyes dead serious, “But then again, it's obvious that the goddess would bless her most dazzling descendant with a just as dazzling place.”

Keith actually groaned this time. Lance eyed him offended, “Is that supposed to be an insult to my undeniable beauty?”

“Oh of course not, _your highness_!” Keith smirked, bowing slightly. He peered a look at the mermaid before adding, “You're by far the most beautiful jewel in the whole sea.” It was extremely satisfying to see Lance's game turn against him, yet the prince took only a moment to recover from his embarrassment and change the topic, “Aren't you joining me in the water?” he asked when his brain decided to function again.

“You know… The whole point of finding another route down here was to avoid getting all wet!” 

“You're no fun!” Lance protested splashing the waters softly, “It will take forever to show you everything from the land!” But Keith didn't seem to waver, “Please… Just for a bit… I’m sure your pants will dry today! It's a really warm day and all…” he was fidgeting his fingers, looking to his right as he searched for more arguments.

“It is pretty hot today…”

“Right?” Lance observed as Keith scrunched his nose, a clear indication that he was thinking about it.

“You have a good point…” he pulled his shirt off without warning, forcing Lance to sink deeper, water reaching just below his eyes, to hide his blush.

The human sat on the edge of the lake, carefully lowering the tip of his toe into the waters. A surprised sigh left his mouth when he realised how warm the water was.

“It’s so warm!” he mumbled in awe, more to himself than to Lance.

“It’s because you're so hot!”

Keith's eyes looked at the mermaid, finding him smirking and pointing finger guns at him. Keith wasn't sure if he was embarrassed or if he just wanted to punch Lance. 

“I now know that your flirting skills are _definitely_ the cause of this war!” he deadpanned. Lance looked at him offended, but before he could speak, Keith had already started a silly impression of his reply, “ _Keith! My flirting skills are a goddess blessing upon the world!_ ”

“Hey!” Lance's tail splashed some water towards Keith, and the black haired boy barely managed to cover his face with his arms, while he proceeded to laugh at his own impression. 

“Oh admit it, Lance!” Keith smirked, “You were definitely gonna say something like that!”

“I was not!” The prince argued offended, frowning slightly, “I was gonna say that the war started before I was born!” he countered, “But you are right! My flirting skills are a bl-

Before Lance could finish, Keith kicked his leg into the ocean, splashing some water in Lance’s direction. The prince looked annoyed, frowning and with an eyebrow raised. Small drops of water insisted on falling off his head and Lance eyes one of them drop right in front of his nose.

“Look what you've done! My hair's all wet now!”

Keith was laughing, “You live underwater!”

“Exactly! But it had dried! Now I look like a duflax.”

Keith opted to ignore whatever Lance had just said, and slowly sank into the water. It was a lot deeper than he expected, and the human found himself swimming towards the center. 

The waters seemed to sparkle more when seen from there. Keith looked down and observed the colorful bottom of the cave, filled with crystals colored as the rainbow. The waters were so crystalline, the effect of the crystals seemed to spread through them, lighting them in a spectrum of shades that kept changing with the light and tides. 

It was beautiful, and Keith found himself so in awe he didn't even notice when Lance approached him, rising from underwater next to him. Keith smiled, unable to hide his amazement towards the place, and the mermaid smiled back.

Lance offered his own hand, and Keith gladly took it, already used to the support. The mermaid pulled him closer, their bodies easily coming together as Keith’s arms found their way around Lance's neck. Violet eyes looked at the blue ones, studying their color like it was the first time seeing them. Lance spun around slowly, letting Keith look around and observe the place quietly. Then, he looked back at Lance.

“So…” the mermaid started, face surprisingly serious, “Are you going to repay me for ruining my hair?”

Keith pretended to wonder, “Hum… Not sure. I don't think I can offer anything worthy of a prince.”

Lance rested his forehead on Keith’s when he saw his head linger closer. The prince smiled, “I might have an idea.”

He stole Keith's lips instantly, kissing him tenderly. The human smirked against the mermaid's lips, enjoying how Lance begged him to open up. And he did, allowing him to explore his mouth.

Lance was the first to pull away, fangs biting Keith's lips till they were swollen and bleeding.

The raven haired teen pulled away, mumbling a complaint about how that hurt. But he didn't bother to complain for long, leaving a trail of kisses along Lance's neck.

The mermaid laughed, “Keith you know that tickles!” Keith hummed in agreement, kissing Lance's gills again and again. Lance laughed, head dropped to his shoulder to shelter his own neck.

Keith’s right hand reaching to grab the back of Lance’s neck while his nose nuzzled against his ear.

“Stop that! I'll drop you!”

“You wouldn't let me drown!” Keith tilted Lance's head to the side, finding his way to his lips again. They kissed silently for a while, before Lance pulled back again, breath hot on Keith's face.

“Deep breath…” he mumbled. Keith complied silently, and soon he was feeling the ocean in his lips again. The taste of salt and iron mixing together. Lance’s arms found their place on Keith’s waist as he pulled him deeper, sinking both into the waters.

Violet eyes opened up once he felt the warm waters surround him completely. The waters lighted in a thousand different shades around them, sparkling like stars in the dark sky. Lance’s tattoos seemed to light up a bit too, along with the blue hue of his eyes.

Keith's hair danced with the currents and the tight ponytail was the only thing that kept his hair from floating madly. The human deepened the kiss after a while, breathing on Lance's breath before he ran out of his own.

He tucked a bit of Lance's hair, and the mermaid immediately rose to the surface. Keith was panting hard, desperate to catch his breath. His face was burning red, lighting Keith’s pale face in a beautiful shade. Lance smiled while his hand reached to coop Keith's cheek. He rubbed it slowly, carefully enough not to hurt him with his claws. Keith closed his eyes, leaning his head towards the touch and he caught his breath.

They stayed like that for a while, eyes locked on each other, silently enjoying the presence of one another. 

“You good?” Lance asked after a while when he noticed that Keith's breath seemed to be stable again. The human nodded, and Lance smiled again, “Good. I’ll show you around then,” he explained holding Keith closer, in the same way he always did when they swam together, “Let me know if you're running out of air!” Keith saw Lance's light up, and he just knew what was coming, “I know I can leave anyone breathless…” 

“Go ahead! Let me drown!” Keith groaned between the mermaid's chuckles. 

Lance dove soon after, sinking them both into the water. Keith’s purple eyes observed the waters around them, enjoying the beautiful colorful crystals glowing on the seafloor. Lance swam rapidly, circling through holes and tunnels until they reached an air pocket. Keith immediately started to recognise objects resting on the walls. Most of the things looked old, some so rusty Keith wondered how they were still standing. On the right side of the place, was something similar to a dent on the rocky walls, just above the water, where Lance displayed a bunch of books.

The mermaid seemed to catch Keith's eyes, and immediately swam them closer to the place. The covers of the books looked really old, their colors fading and smudging with the markings of the title. He looked at Lance, a silent request that was granted with a soft smile. Keith carefully studied the books, picking them up when his hands dried enough. Lance explained what the books were about, making small summaries and telling his favourite parts to Keith. The human glanced toward the mermaid discreetly, enjoying the sight of Lance’s face lighting up as he showed his collection.

He had to admit it was quite adorable. The way his blue eyes brightened and suddenly nothing else matter. Those sweet eyes hiding shyly behind some of his long brown bangs. That soft smile, peering sneakily to warm Keith’s chest.

He enjoyed the time Lance showed him around, admiring more the mermaid than his treasures, but that was just a small detail. 

Keith’s arms were around the mermaid’s neck, finding support in his shoulders as Lance swam the to the surface waters of the cave. Keith instinctively closed his eyes right before he reached to surface, and felt the translucent water drops trail down from his hair. He wiped them away from his eyes before reached to his damp hair. Yet, Lance’s hand was already there, tenderly pushing the bangs away from Keith’s eyes. 

The human’s eyes widen for a split second, but soon his eyebrows relaxed, as his face shifted to a loving expression. Lance’s hands dawdled on Keith’s hair for a while, finger’s intertwining with the black bangs. Purple eyes closed, enjoying the soft caresses on his head, the increasing burning of his cheeks, the quivering sensation of the cold air brushing on his back, the warm huff from Lance’s breath.

“Hey,” the mermaid called softly, enjoying as Keith’s eyes opened lazily and looked back at him, “I saved the best for last!”

His voice emanated as much excitement as his blinding grin. Keith found himself smiling back, unable to keep the corner of his mouth from rising.

“Watch closely.” One of Lance’s hand circled Keith’s waist as the other caressed the waters around them. Keith watched the motion with curious eyes, immediately focusing his attention on Lance’s arm tattoos. 

A weak breath kissed his cheek as a gentle voice left Lance throat. Keith’s eyes left the water for a moment, glancing towards the mermaid. His eyes were closed, emotion sang as sounds lazily filling the whole cave. 

He saw it then, how leisurely Lance lit up. Well, his tattoos did.

All of them, including the marks under his eyes, softly glowed with an intense blue color, a perfect matching contrast against his tanned skin. Keith looked around, observing that something that, to him, looked like fireflies, soaring from the depths to the surface. Purple eyes trailed off, noticing that Lance’s tail lit up too, matching carved marks gleaming in the scales of his tail. Keith’s eyes lingering, wondering if Lance also had tattoos on his tail. Apparently, he did.

The glowing blue had intensified as the melody of the song proceeded, and the marking on his tail, that normally were disguised by the blue shades of the tail, were now lighting up like a blue flame burned underneath those scales.

Keith looked back at Lance, wondering if the mermaid had opened his eyes. Yet, instead of being met by the familiar blue orbs, Keith found himself staring at a small sparkling circular particle as it flew upwards. The human looked around, realising that, every here and there, more single dots appeared, in a thousand different colors, rising from the warm waters. 

A smile peered in the corners of Keith’s lips, lighting his face just like the ocean floor lit under them. His eyes trailed the depths, admiring how the crystals glow thrived with Lance’s voice. Keith saw that the crystals released the gleaming particles, that rose from the dark deeps, up to the top of the rocky cave, filling the darkness like the stars crowded the sky.

A muffled awed breath joined Lance’s ringing voice, completing it like it always belonged there. Blue eyes opened up, staring at the violet ones, with a fierce glow that immediately dimmed when Lance’s lips stopped to move.

The bright lights that lit up around them, lasted a moment longer, shining brightly as Lance’s lips found their way to Keith’s ones.

Tasting them, licking them, biting them.

Keith whimpered weakly, complaints forgotten when Lance’s tongue entered his mouth and his hand tucked the black hair, making Keith’s head fall back. The mermaid observed Keith’s exposed neck, admiring how his Adam's apple bobbed when he swallowed. Lance’s lips fell to Keith’s jaw, planting kiss after kiss on it, making a trail of crimson pink marks, across his neck, until he reached the crook. Keith breathless moans filled the cave, easily replacing the silence that followed the end of Lance’s melody. The mermaid kissed the crook of the human’s neck, ripping a laugh out of Keith. His tongue brushed over the mark, fangs sinking into the pale flesh soon after, until it burned red.

“Lance,” a breathless cry escaped Keith’s throat, too desperately lost between the sweet pain and the agonizing tenderness.

Keith was panting hard when he opened his eyes, the salty drops on its corners blurred his already weak vision. He forgot to breathe when Lance’s hand decided to travel across the bare skin of his back. Soft touch interleaved with the sharp yet rare scratches from Lance’s claws.

His mind was screaming, goosebumps traveling on his skin like electricity.

Lance.

Everything was Lance. 

He could only see Lance. Smell Lance. Touch Lance. Feel Lance.

He was the only one on his mind, but still, the thing he still craved the most.

Lance. Lance. Lance.

His arms grew weaker, lifeless limbs, sliding off Lance’s shoulders like water.

The mermaid did not let him sink, pulling him closer, with the arm that still lingered in Keith’s waist. Purple eyes admired as Lance’s fingers brushed his hair, smiling at him lovingly.

He wouldn’t mind drowning.

He wouldn’t mind being dragged to depths. 

He wouldn’t mind dying.

He wouldn’t mind feeling his lungs burn for air. 

As long as Lance’s arms remained around him, he wouldn’t mind being taken to the deepest and darkest corners of the sea.

Maybe he was drowning. Maybe he had drowned. 

Everything that had happened. Everything that was happening still felt like I long dazed dream. It felt wrong to be that happy. Impossible even. So, it had to be a dream.

Just a dream.

And Keith knew that he could never fantasize about it again if he ever woke up. Waking up, meant losing Lance forever.

“Thank you,” Keith mumbled softly, his voice so weak Lance barely heard it. “Thank you.” Blue eyes keeked, studying the softness that Keith’s features had become.

“Keith?” Lance pulled him closer, worrying that something could be happening to Keith.

The voice was barely above a whisper, filled with sadness and regret, yet surprisingly convict, “Thank you, Lance. For saving my life.”

The mermaid’s lips opened slightly, fangs showing up, and eyes widening. He smiled soon after, the carrying and soft smile that somehow, always manage to comfort Keith, “Why are you saying that again. You’ve already thank-”

“No, I haven't!” Keith looked away, heart clenching on his chest, “I- I- Back then, I didn’t mean it!” His voice was dreadfully sad. It wasn’t something Lance was used to hear. Or liked to hear, for the matter. “But now I do. I mean it! I was just really upset at the time..”

Keith looked at the blue eyes, facing the ocean in them, “Thank you for saving my life, Lance.”

“It’s ok, man! I know all that jazz.” 

“I owe you my life. I owe you everything.” 

Lance only pulled him closer, forcing Keith’s head onto his shoulder as he mumbled,

“No, you don't! You don’t owe me anything. I’m glad I saved your life. I would do it again and again, I’d never let you drown. I love you too much.” He kissed the pale forehead, lips brushing into some soft trends of hair, an unspoken promise passing between them. _I would do anything for you._

Keith’s eyes peered at him, his lips parting softly to speak, but Lance was faster, “I would save you again! I don’t regret it and I never will! I love you so much.”

A shy smile painted in crimson the pale face. Keith looked away. Then, back at Lance. His lips opening and closing, in breathless attempts to speak.

The mermaid found it adorable. How Keith could be completely starstruck with something so simple. Yet, as much as he enjoyed watching him search for words to answer, Lance didn’t want to force him to say anything.

He softly ended Keith’s silent suffering, kissing him again, unhurriedly this time. He concentrated on the soft lips under his own, tenderly kissing the boy in his arms like he had all the time in this world. 

Keith kissing back was the best answer he could get. The way the human’s lips brushed against his own, lazily driving Lance to the edge, was better than any word Keith could have tried to say.

Time didn’t really matter when they were together. Hours forgotten in each other's arms and lips. Keith had no idea how long they had stayed like that. He just knew that Lance had held him in the warm waters for the eternity that his heart took to settle down. He petted Keith’s black hair, playing with it as he interlaced his fingers with the bangs. Keith only clenched closer, diving into Lance’s chest, seeking his comforting warmth.

Took him a while to finally leave his safe haven, peering at Lance’s eyes silently. The mermaid was looking up ahead, combing Keith’s hair silently while he stared at the glowing lights that floated around. He realised that Lance had sat in one of the walls of the cave, using a ridge to support them both. Keith smiled, remembered on of the question he had when he first entered the cave.

“What are those?” He pointed toward the light and startling Lance. 

“Goddess! You scared me!” His hand pressed on his chest, as if the gesture would calm him. “Also, what are you talking about?”

Keith looked at the air in front of them, “The flying glowing things...”

He looked back at Lance, wondering why he was taking so long to answer. The mermaid’s blue eyes were on him, studying his features carefully, “Keith… That’s quintessence!” he said like it was the most obvious thing.

“Quint-what now?” Keith’s eyebrows shot up. “What does it do? Besides glowing in the dark?” 

“Are you joking?” 

Oh he knew that face. No. No joking.

“Chill out. I assumed you knew about since that’s wh-”

“Lance…”

“Yeah. So... Quintessence is hmm..,” his hand held his chin while he made a thoughtful expression, “Boy this is actually hard to explain.”

Keith glanced at him, eyebrows lifting, as Lance tried to look for words.

“So, quintessence is sorta like our life source. It generates its own energy warming the cold waters and lighting up the darks depths.” Keith’s eyes sank to the floor of the lake, observing the colorful crystals glow.

“Is that why the water is so warm?”

“I guess…” Lance laughed, “My flawless looks help, though.”

Keith ignored the remark in favor of asking a couple more questions, “So… Is this... like an energy source?”

“Ehh I guess you could say that.” Lance confirmed, “Quintessence crystals grow on the ocean floor, but the small ones don’t do much of job. At least in the “warming up the cold waters” thing. They’re still beautiful and light up every time we sing. Just like the tattoos! They supposedly glow stronger when you use magic, but I wouldn't know about that.” lance pouted, but Keith knew he was more faking it than actually annoyed.

Keith gave him a comforting smile. But there was something intriguing him. “I’m assuming you have big crystals too?”

“Why, Yeah! We have this giant crystal right above our city. Remember when I told you about the shield?”

“It comes from that thing?” Keith asked in awe.

“Yup! The crystal keeps us safe and gives light and warmth in the dark depths.”

“Ok. So, let's suppose that that crystal is no more. What would happen to Altea?”

“I don't really like where you're going with this.” Lance looked at Keith suspiciously.

“I told you about the legend of the Goddess. You remember it?”

“Yeah… I guess I do remember most of it.”

“Basically the goddess was the first mermaid to establish a link with that crystal. When she grew old the link was transferred to one of her descents. Allura is linked with it now, because I’m obviously not linked to anything that yields powerful magic.” He sighed, half closing his eyes as he looked at the violet ones...

Keith looked at him, worry showing on his face, “Hey…” 

“If Allura dies without a new link being made, the crystal dies too. Without the crystal, we can't live in the deeps.” 

“So if the crystal is taken, your entire society will perish?”

Lance nodded silently. “That's why we have to fight. We can’t let them get the crystal.” 

“Let me guess… That's why mermaids are fighting this war! To protect the crystal?”

Another nod. “You didn't know about it?” 

“I’d never heard of this quintessence thing ever before in my whole life.”

“Really? Wow…” Lance looked to the right, trying to recall something. “This whole war started because humans tried to steal the crystal in the first place.” 

He looked away, remembering what Coran had told him about _that day_. How humans had attacked their city and how his mother had died to protect him. 

 _She died because of me…_ Lance swallowed a sob, and felt relieved to see that Keith hadn’t noticed him or his struggles. The human seemed to be too deep in thought to notice anything. Lance observed him, studying how Keith’s features twisted as he considered something. He was content to have something to distract himself from his own thoughts.

“That’s it!” Keith exclaimed out of nowhere, “That has to be it!” he looked at Lance,

“Everything makes sense now!” 

“What exactly makes sense?” Lance raised an eyebrow. 

“They made up this whole war because they want that crystal!” Lance eyed him like

Keith had said was the most obvious thing. The human ignored in favor of continuing, “If what Pidge said is right, then…” Keith looked at Lance, eyes wide with worry and fear. 

“What? Keith? What is it?”

“My roommate and I, we’ve been doing some digging. Mainly Pidge, but still. The other day, when we got to the dorms, Pidge told me something very intriguing. Apparently, in one of the secret facilities, they were building some sort of weapon.”

Keith swallowed hard, remembering his roommate’s words, _That thing is definitely some sort of weapon. I assume it is to use in the war. But, there’s something that really been intriguing me._ Keith took a deep breath, words floating to the corners of his mind, _I have no idea how they plan to power up that thing._

But Keith had, “They’re probably planning to use the crystal to power that weapon.”

“Ohhh…”

“But why do they made that thing? Pidge’s hypothesis made sense, but if mermaids die without the crystal, then, there is no point to make a weapon to fight mermaids with.” 

“I really get where you’re going, Keith… But I’d rather not find that out.” 

“Maybe they don't know that taking the crystal will destroy Altea?” Keith was silent for a while, before he almost shouted out, “I can’t believe you didn't tell me anything. This makes so much sense. They are after this thing. So they come up with a reason to go down there get it, and getting it make them “win” the war.” 

Keith could almost hear Iverson informing them that they had finally found a way to exterminate mermaids once and for all. Meanwhile, they would accidentally get their hands on an infinite power source. 

“I’m glad things are making sense, but seriously, why making up the whole “mermaids eat human’s” thing! That thought will haunt me to my grave!” Keith chuckled.

“Personally I find the gap thing weirder.”

“Ok. True!”

“And they legitly believe mermaids can’t speak our language!”

“Maybe it’s a way to inadvertently prevent you guys from speaking with a mermaid and finding out the truth?”

Keith laughed. “Good point!” he said, but Lance could hear in his tone that he wasn’t satisfied. Like he knew that there was something there that he was overlooking.

Even with Lance’s insistence, he managed to slip out of the water, walking to the edge of the cave, closer to his pile of clothes.

 _Lance said the garrison tried to steal the crystal. That means, they have a way to travel low enough into the depth and that they know mermaids have an entire city. But they always made it sound like mermaids were lone and individual creatures, without any structured society._ Keith picked up two small dry rocks, letting his mind run, _All the other things make sense if they’re trying to make up a reason to see mermaids as enemies. They prey on humans. They don't speak, so don’t try to interact with them. But why hide their society? And why make up that monstrous gap._

He was missing something. He had to be missing something.

Maybe he was over thinking. That something just didn’t match, like trying to stick together a puzzle where some pieces fit, but the whole picture just doesn’t make sense.

“What are you doing?” Lance asked, voice rising high enough to startle Keith out of his mind. The human raised an eyebrow, head involuntary moving forward in what Lance came to know as the K _eith is confused_ face.

“I’m starting a fire!” Keith offered as if it was the most obvious thing, “I figured my pants would dry faster that way! I don't want to get caught.

He barely finished the phrase as Lance immediately screamed, hands reaching forward, “No! Nononono! No fire!”

Keith immediately stopped what he was doing, eyeing Lance's face twist in distress and fear.

“Everything ok?” He raised a brow like it would help figuring Lance out.

“Yeah. Everything is fine, Keith!” Lance uttered, but his voice was shift and tight.

The human only peeked at him, waiting for the answer he so wanted.

“Mermaids don't like fire ok.”

Keith’s violet eyes bugged out, “Are you serious?”

“Of course I’m serious!” Lance crossed his arms, tensing with every word, “Mermaids don’t like fire. It’s too bright, too warm and-”

“Alright, I get it! No fire!” He was lifting his hands as he walked towards the lake again. Lance approved the action, relaxing instantly. 

Keith sat on edge of the rocks that surrounded the lake inside the cave. Lance was swimming in the waters in front of him, enveloped in the beautiful lighting while he made loops and other tricks underwater. He started to show off when he noticed Keith’s eyes on him. He rose from the deeps after a while, panting desperately as if he couldn't breathe enough air. Keith smiled, observing Lance pass his hands through his hair before settling next to him, elbows and arms resting on the rocky floor. The mermaid only looked at the purple orbs, studying Keith meticulously. 

“Ok! I admit it!” he said, raising his pale hands in defense, “This is actually pretty cool!”

Lance beamed at that, like those simple words were the best thing he heard all day and Keith found himself swallowing a chuckle.

The two of them remained like that for a while, enjoying each other's company, throughout smiles, jokes, kisses, and caresses. Keith had noticed that Lance had started to act a bit weirder, but he said nothing. He figured something had happened and maybe he just had a lot on his mind. He figured if Lance wanted to talk to him about it, he would. He didn't want to push where he wasn't invited and make Lance uncomfortable. 

But as the minutes passed, he only seemed to grow more restless. Keith felt his heartbeat pick up, worry washing over him everytime he looked at Lance's nervous eyes.

Keith was never good at keeping his instincts in check. And before he could hold back, the words fell from his mouth like water flowing down a stream, “Is something wrong?” He frowned a little, eyebrow raising involuntary. Lance looked at him, eyes suddenly widened in surprise.

It took him only a moment to smile back, bright grin on his face like the sun on the sky, “No! Everything is fine.”

Keith could see the fakeness in his smile, the uncertainty in his voice, the fear in his eyes. He only had to look back at Lance to see him come undone.

“I ahm…” His lips pursed, fingers fidgeting and eyes looking anywhere but Keith. 

He hated it. How from one second to the other, they just seemed like two complete strangers.

Lance was looking back at him, blue eyes gleaming softly, “I wanted to give you something.” Keith's frown deepened as confusion spread across his features. “Close your eyes…” Lance's voice was just above a whisper. 

The human hesitated for a moment, but he obeyed anyway, half expecting a kiss. It wouldn’t be the first time that happened, after all.

He waited in anticipation for a while, seeing only darkness. His other senses seemed to be on the edge, desperately trying to understand what was happening. 

Keith heard as Lance left the waters, assuming that he was probably sitting on the edge with him when he felt some water drops falling on him. He could hear Lance breathing speed up, and almost feel his reluctance.

After some time, Keith felt something drop on his chest, and soon Lance was asking him to open his eyes again. He was immediately blessed with the blue ocean that lived on Lance’s orbs.

“I want you to have it.” Was all he said. Keith was confused for a while, but the height around his neck made his mind less fuzzy. He looked down immediately finding a transparent crystal laying there.

Keith's eyes widened in surprise as soon as he recognised the jewel. Lance's necklace. The one that he always wore. The one that was a gift from his mother.

He didn't know Lance's motives, but he couldn't accept such a thing.

The human shook his head, his hand gently reaching up to give it back to Lance, “There's no way I can keep this!” he said firmly and felt Lance’s hand on his.

“I want _you_ to have it!” Lance insisted, smiling brightly, “See it as a gift. Like a lucky charm, to keep you safe!”

Keith gazed at him in wonder and awe.

“What? It worked for me!” Lance protested. “Well, kinda?” His slight annoyance dropped when more words flowed out his mouth, “I’m serious when I say that I want you to keep it.” He smiled softly, “I've had that necklace since I can remember. It almost became a part of me,” Keith wanted to protest but Lance interrupted him, “Promise me you’ll keep it close, ok? So you won't forget about me…”

“Lance?” Keith’s pale hand reached towards Lance's face. Fingers lingering behind his ear while the thumb rubbed the mermaid's cheek sweetly. When he had Lance's eyes on him, he finally spoke, voice careful and soft, “I will never forget you...” He leaned forward, resting his forehead on top of Lance's, “I love you,” he made sure Lance heard every word, “I always will no matter what happens.”

The prince smiled, a small blush spreading across his cheeks. His arms circled around Keith's neck, pulling them together so Lance could kiss him.

He heard the mermaid mumble a sweet, _I love you too_ , on his lips.

Lance broke the kiss after a while, without really splitting them apart. He watched Keith closely.

How beautiful he was. How his eyes seemed to change color every once in awhile. How his eyelashes were longer than other guys he had seen. How his lips were so juicy. How a line of pink painted his pale skin. How his breath felt brushing against his skin. How fast Keith's heart was beating.

Lance smiled, hands reaching to grab some of Keith's hair, tilting his head just to kiss him again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for how late I'm updating this.  
> But I was caught in between summer holidays ending, needing to help clean the house, getting a last minute cosplay done for a convention that happened this weekend, and the actual convention... so yeah... This chapter ended up taking a lot of time.  
> Hopefully, it was worth the waiting. Sorry once again! And thank you for reading and all the feedback!
> 
> Also, I'll try to keep the chapters updating at Saturdays, but since college is starting again, the schedule will probably change to either Sunday or Mondays, because I'll probably need the weekend to work on the fic.


	8. Chapter 8

Of all the times Hunk had agreed to one of Lance’s request, this particular one time took the quiznacking cake.

The poor yellow tailed mermaid wasn’t even trying to be lowkey about it anymore, “Lance. This is a bad idea!”

“Relax, Hunk! This is a great idea. You’re gonna love, Keith!”

“I’m actually extra sure that this is a terrible idea, Lance.”

“Come on, buddy! Have some faith in me!” The prince said, diving neatly.

“I’ve actually done that a couple of time now, and I can assure you that none of them," he paused, emphasising his point, " _went nicely_.”

“That’s rude, man!” Lance stopped swimming and stared at his friend, watching him approach, “I’m giving you the chance to actually meet and see for yourself that humans are just like us.” Hunk raised an eyebrow. “Minus the tail, and the magic, and some other stuff.”

“Yeah, man, whatever.” The two friends continued together to the hidden cave where, supposedly, Keith was already waiting. Lance was doing a terrible job to mask his excitement and Hunk would actually find it cute, if his best friend’s boyfriend wasn’t actually a quiznacking human.

“We’re here!” Lance swam faster, easily flipping his fins to gain more speed. “Remember. Keith is not an evil monster. Please don’t be rude.”

“Human’s are freaking dangerous and I don’t-” Hunk instantly hid behind a big boulder near the entrance of the cave when he spotted a black tuft of hair. “Laaance…” he called dragging the sound barely above a whisper. “This was a bad idea. I’m going back.”

“Hey!” The yellow tailed mermaid heard his friend's voice and watched him reach the edge of the lake, resting his elbows easily on the damp rocks.

“Lance,” Another voice joined him. Hunk noticed how contented he sounded, but he still couldn’t bring himself to look towards the sound, opting to remain hidden behind his trustworthy rock. “Where’s your friend?” Human-Keith asked. “Wasn’t be coming today?”

“Yup. He is hiding behind that rock.” he could almost feel Lance pointing towards him.

“I’m not hiding!” Hunk argued, “I’m just, I’m just checking out the place.”

He heard two different laughs when he finished speaking. “Hunk is actually pretty shy.” Lance’s voice sounded first.

“Oh! Don’t say!” Human-Keith teased, “And here was I thinking hiding behind a rock was the universal 'hello' for mermaids!”

“Hey!” Lance protested. “Are you trying to say anything?” Hunk heard his friend’s voice rise higher than normal, “Just because I hid behind a rock too, doesn’t mean it’s a common practice!”

The human laughed, and Hunk took the moment to peer at them, actually really curious to see what Lance's face looked like.

His friend was smiling like he hadn’t even been roasted just a moment ago, eyes brighter than the sun as he looked back at the human. The black hair teen, on the other hand, remained still. Violet eyes looking to the prince with a daring gaze.

Hunk smiled, somehow finding what he was seeing highly familiar.

Lance used his hands to rise higher, straightening his arms and allowing his upper part to leave the water. His eyes were on Keith the whole time. “You haven’t greeted me yet. Not decently.”

Hunk’s brown eyes observed the grin that spread across his friend’s face and the sly smirk that followed on the human’s one.

“Forgive my rudeness, your highness!” he said, voice teasing yet surprisingly meaningful. The human reached closer to Lance's face, hand easily coming to rest on the prince’s cheek before he brushed his own lips on Lance’s.

Hunk felt himself freak out for a moment, experiencing a chill of adrenaline run down his spine when he feared that the human could be trying to hurt his friend. Yet, Lance’s pleased moans, made him realise otherwise. Hunk stopped himself from swimming forward and defend his prince from the human’s threat as he figured what they were doing.

Kissing. Was what Lance had called it.

It looked absolutely disgusting, especially done with a human.

Lance didn’t seem to mind the least. Kissing Keith back passionately, and constantly liking the human’s lips. Keith moaned a soft no, trying to pull away, but Lance was faster, hand reaching and efficiently grabbing him. The momentum from Keith’s movement didn’t help them, and the strength Lance had made to keep him in place, actually ended up being a bit too much, and Keith found himself, stumbling forward, and falling into the warm waters.

Lance’s laugh filled the cave, and he only stopped when two violet eyes glanced at him deadly.

“Lance.” he complained, “You’ve gotten my clothes all wet now!” The prince laughed, mumbling an apology, “And you even dare to laugh.” But he was smiling, easily finding a resting place on Lance’s shoulders, “You better make it up to me!”

“Oh gross…” Hunk murmured behind his rock as he saw his friend and the human start kissing again.

Lance laughed against the human’s lips. “It might look gross but it’s actually the best thing from human society that I’ve ever learned.”

“Still gross!” Hunk protested, hiding better when he spotted Keith’s violet eyes looking back at him.

“Hey! No need to hide. I don’t bite!” Keith offered when he realised his actions were responsible for making Hunk hide again.

“Oh, but you _do_ bite, Keith!”

The human looked back at Lance who was proudly smirking, shit eating grin spreading across his face as he drowned in proudness from his reply.

“Oh my god! Lance!” Keith’s hands went to the mermaid’s head, trying to force him down to the water, “Drown already!”

Lance laughed, “You know that doesn’t work with me!”

“I don’t even care!”

Lance smiled, both arms circling Keith’s waist, “I’m sorry, babe. But you know I had to do it!” Keith groaned and continued to shove Lance to the waters.

It took Hunk a couple more minutes until he dared to leave his hiding spot. He, firstly, opted to peer at them from time to time, observing how both of them, even seemed to forget he was there. The yellow tailed mermaid had to admit that, from all the other times he had seen Lance in love with someone, it had never been like this. He looked so happy it actually hurt a bit when one looked directly at them. Yet, and even though Keith was a human, Hunk found himself smiling at their adorable figures.

It was a strange thought, but he had to admit, that every time he looked at Keith and Lance, both in the lake, with only their truck showing above the waters, they seemed frighteningly similar.

Not a human and a mermaid.

Just two guys, so lost in their own eyes, they would actually forget they weren’t alone.

And that was when Hunk found himself thinking that, maybe, just maybe, Lance was a bit right on this one.

But he decided to wait for a couple more douboches before he decided to leave the security of his dear rock.

When he did, Keith was sitting on the edge of the lake, jacket and shirt long thrown away to the further side of the cave, in a sad attempt to allow them to dry. Lance was looking at him, complaining and insisting for Hunk to swim there.

“Come on, Hunk!” The mermaid uttered, “Keith is not going to hurt you! Or _bite!_ ” Hunk observed the look the prince made to the human when he said the last part of the sentence. Human-Keith groaned, which was pretty understandable, and easily threw some water in Lance’s direction. The blue tailed mermaid laughed, throwing some water back himself, and Hunk found it quite adorable how he clearly held back.

“Keith,” Lance called, and the human’s eyes immediately flew to him, “This is my best friend Hunk.” The mermaid, then, looked at his friend, “Hunk, this is Keith!”

“Wow… Why don’t I get to have any title?” Keith asked jokingly.

“Oh! Sorry! My biggest apologies.” Lance cleared his throat, easily restarting the introductions. “Hunk, this is Keith! Mr. Lame Mullet!”

“Enough with my hair already! What did it ever do to you!”

“That thing will haunt me to my grave!” Lance pointed out, gesturing for Hunk to look at it too.

“It is pretty weird…” the yellow tailed mermaid agreed.

Lance high-fived him, “One point to team mermaid!”

Keith ignored, eyes rolling before they settled on Hunk, “Has he always been like this?”

“Indeed,” Hunk nodded, “It’s actually gotten worse over time.”

“Huunk!” The prince complained, feeling slightly betrayed by his friend.

“Wow…” Keith offered in awe, “For how long have you two known each other.”

“Since ever!” Lance answered as Hunk replied, “I met him when I was 3!”

“Oh boy. How have you been able to put up with him for like what? 15 years? Almost.”

“Excuse you?” Lance argued but his protest was easily muffled by Hunk’s laugh.

“Oh, you don’t know half of it!” Hunk confirmed.

“I respect your bravery and endurance on the matter.”

“Hey! I’m still here!”

“Oh, Human-Keith.” Keith rose an eyebrow but said nothing, “Lance’s actually been in decay for past years, and I can prove it. Just hear me out.”

And for Lance’s demise, Keith actually heard him. Hunk seemed to have lost his awkwardness as he gladly explained and told every embarrassing story or fact he knew about the prince. Which, for the record, was a long list. Too long. This was not how things were supposed to go.

“I think one of my favorite's of Lance’s phases was when he pretty much only used pickup lines to speak.”

Keith laughed, and Lance mumbled a soft, "I was only 10!"

“I know I shouldn't probably be surprised,” Keith said eyeing Lance, “But I actually believe every word of that.” Lance’s voice hushed over theirs, in a lame attempt to make them stop.

“There was also this time he tried to hit on someone that was old enough to be his mom.”

“In my legitimate defense, she looked younger!”

Keith was laughing, constantly incentivizing Hunk to continue. And Hunk did, ignoring the prince’s begging prays.

Keith smiled at the 837th attempt Lance made to stop them, “Come on, your highness. Hunk and I are having a bonding moment.”

“Will you please stop torturing me, Hunk!” Lance begged, glued to his friend's side, “You’re my best friend! You're supposed to have my back. Not attack it!”

Hunk’s brown eyes looked at the human, “I dunno. What do you think, Keith?”

“Even tho I’m tremendously enjoying this,” Keith said smiling while Lance mumbled a desperate, _I’m not,_ “You should probably stop, though. For now!”

“You wish!” Lance said, “I’m never bringing Hunk along again,” he prince offered, “I haven’t been tortured like in ages. I’m keeping it that way for a couple more.”

Both Keith and Hunk laughed, at his reply and Lance couldn't really regret bringing them together, even if they had bonded over his misery.

 

* * *

  

_Cadets,_ Iverson called, voice loud and steady, filling the amphitheater entirely, _Today will be a big day for all of you. And tomorrow will be a big day for humanity._ Keith felt a shiver run down his spine when he realised how similar it felt to the announcement of Kerberos, _All of you will be participating on a mission that will forever change the future of humanity and give us the upper hand on this war._

“Keith? Why did you stop?!” Lance’s complaining voice pulled him back to reality. The mermaid was pouting, and his hand was resting on Keith’s in a lame attempt to make him resume his actions.

The human smiled, fingers easily returning to Lance’s soft hair, petting it delicately. The mermaid hummed happily and a smile tucked on the corner of his lips.

Keith let his mind rest, forcing himself to only focus on the sensation of Lance’s hair brushing against his fingertips or the relaxed way his breath came out every time Keith rubbed behind his ears. His violet eyes lingered, studying the mermaid’s features. His blue eyes were closed, but the blue scales that painted the side of his face were just as beautiful, reflecting a lovely scale of blue hues thanks to the dim glow of the quintessence in the waters.

He fought the instinct to jerk back when Lance’s eyes suddenly opened. Even tho, Keith’s face was ridiculously close to Lance’s, the mermaid didn't seem to mind, only smiling fondly back at the violet eyes.

“Is everything ok? You seem… I dunno? Far away?”

“Sorry…” he offered, looking away. Of course, Lance had noticed. It was incredibly ridiculous how in such a small period of time, the mermaid had learned to read him as easily as one reads a book. “I didn’t want to worry you. I’m fine.” He smiled, and the prince didn't bother lifting his head from Keith’s lap.

The human resumed what he was doing, pating Lance’s head and massaging his neck carefully enough not to tickle him. The mermaid hummed happily, tilting his head from time to time, in an attempt to give Keith more room to caress him.

“Hey, Keith,” he said, voice soft and barely above a whisper. The human’s violet eyes looked back at him, studying Lance for a moment before he replied.

“Yeah?”

Lance smiled softly, “Come closer,” His hand reached towards Keith, “I want to tell you something.”

Keith did. Enable to deny anything to the mermaid. Lance’s hand easily found its way to the pale cheek, as Keith sank closer. Lance’s smile grew wider as he guided Keith’s lips to his own.

It was a small kiss. Far from their desperate make out sessions but not less meaningful. Keith didn’t pull away, smiling against the mermaid’s lips as he stared into the deep ocean blue eyes.

“I love you,” he spoke against the swollen lips. Lance’s hand cupped the human’s face, keeping him right where he wanted him.

“I love you too,” He couldn’t hide the smile or his flushing cheeks. Keith beamed in tenderness, before brushing Lance’s hair away and kissing his forehead.

Lance’s red deepened yet he somehow managed to remember how to keep breathing.   

“I need to talk to you,” Keith mumbled. His hand rubbed near Lance’s ear, before helping him sit up.

“Everything ok? Did something happen?”

“No. At least… Not yet.”

Lance eyed him confused, eyes filled with worry as he heard every word Keith had to tell him.

“Something big is going to happen, Lance.” He looked away, not sure how to proceed but certain he had to, “Commander Iverson. He is one of the higher-ups.” The mermaid nodded, “He told us this morning that tomorrow we’re all going to be part of an important mission.”

“You too?” Lance blinked, voice stanked in concern.

Keith felt his teeth sinking into his lips, “Yeah…”

Lance looked mortified. He knew Keith was in the army and that one day, something like this would happen. But, now that the actual moment had come, he couldn’t bring himself to accept it.

“Please, believe in me when I tell you I don’t want to do this.” The voice was as fragile as Keith felt, “I don’t want to kill your people. I don’t want to hurt them. But I have to find my brother and-”

“I know.” Lance said, hand holding to Keith’s ones tightly, “I know you have to stay in the army to find your brother.” Keith bit his own lip and Lance interlaced their fingers, “I know you don’t want to fight this war, but, you have to...”

“Lance.” Violet met blue for a split second, “I’ve never seen anything like this before. There were so many people assigned to this mission, and the weapons we’ll be using...”

Lance felt his breath getting stuck in his throat, “What about them?”

“They’re like nothing I’ve ever seen.” Keith looked at the mermaid's eyes, “It gives some sort of electrical charge.”

“What?”

“I fear it will probably be able to knock out more than one mermaid at once, since there’ll be water all over the place. It looks,” he hesitated, "... incredibly painful. Also, dangerous..."

Lance swallowed hard as he tried to imagine the effects of the weapon. Something that could make various mermaid blackout just for being on the waters, couldn't be good. 

“I wish I could tell you more, but I myself don’t know much. They won’t tell us anything until tomorrow. But I have a feeling they plan to steal the crystal.”

“It’s ok. Don’t worry.” Keith had never told him anything about human attacks before, even though some of them had already happened, ever since they'd started to meet. This only left Lance more restless. For Keith to tell him about this, then, it had to mean...

“Lance,” he grabbed the mermaid’s face, forcing him to look at him, “I’m serious when I tell you that I’ve never seen anything like this before. Your civilization could be in great danger. You too.”

The mermaid waved him off, “It’s ok. Don't worry. We have our particle barrier! Nothing will harm us if-”

“You have to warn everyone to stay inside.”

“I will!” Lance voice came out with more conviction than he had, “I will tell Allura and everything will be fine.” Keith frowned, but he didn't waver, "I promise."

Keith smiled, slightly relieved with the words.

“But you have to promise me to be careful too.” Lance blurted. “Please. Don’t do anything stupid.”

Keith smiled before kissing the mermaid desperately. Lance complied without a single protest, letting Keith conquer his lips. “I’ll be careful. I promise.” Their forehead came to rest together.

Lance didn’t say a word for a while, only staring at Keith’s stunning eyes.

He didn’t dare to think that indeed something could happen. He didn’t dare to think that Keith could be hurt tomorrow. He didn’t dare to think that he _might never see him again._

Lance reached forward, arms circling Keith into a tight hug. The human froze, every muscle of his body shifting thanks to the embrace.

He mumbled barely audible, yet endlessly confused, “Lance?”

The mermaid didn’t let go. Only holding him tighter, “I’m scared.”

He knew Keith had to fight. But he also knew what could happen to him.

“I don’t want you to die!” Lance’s face sank to the crook of Keith’s neck, using it to mumble his cries, “I wish you didn’t have to fight.”

Keith hugged him back, shielding the mermaid in his arms, “It’s ok. You’re ok. I’m here. Nothing’s going to happen. Everything will be fine.”

Lance nodded, but his hands were clenching around Keith’s shirt. His breath coming out uneven, linked by a stream of hiccups and sobs. Lance did his best to keep his eyes from watering, yet the human could feel his shirt getting damp.

Keith’s embrace tightened, and his right hand traveled to Lance’s head, petting him softly and hushing soft whimpers. Telling Lance he was going to be ok. Telling him everything would be fine. Telling him nothing would happen. Telling him that he would always be right there.

 

“I’m scared too.” he admitted when Lance's cries started to die out, “But I have to do this. I can’t leave the garrison if there’s still a chance to find my brother.” He swallowed a breath, “I can’t leave the garrison if I want to see you again.” His hand reached for Lance’s face, carefully forcing him to look back at him. “I want to see you again. So, I don’t mind fighting tomorrow.”

Lance shook his head, “It’s not fair. I didn’t start this war and neither did you. You shouldn’t have to fight it.” Lance’s head was resting on Keith’s chest, “We’ve been caught in a middle of a war that was never ours!”

The human swallowed the words, grasping how true they were. It only made him feel more powerless. He pulled out the glowing jewel by the thread he now always kept around his neck.

He made sure Lance’s eyes had made contact with the necklace, “I promise you I won’t die.”

“You know you can’t promise that,”

“I just did.” His voice was surprisingly firm, “I won't die.”

“Promise we’ll see each other again.”

“I promise.”

“And that you’ll always love me.”

“I already do.” Keith smiled, “I promise.” He said when he saw Lance’s insecure gaze.

“Promise you will never forget me and that you’ll always be here for me.”

“I promise.”

 

* * *

 

Hunk was panicking, which, by itself, wasn’t new. He tried to calm down, taking the breaths or swinging his tail methodically. It normally helped. But today wasn’t the case.

Coran had already come to ask for Lance, offering that Allura wanted to discuss some matters with him. Hunk hated to lie, especially in situations like this.

One thing was jokingly lying to make fun of Lance’s ridiculous lack of awareness of some situations. Another thing was lying to Coran, about none other than the whereabouts of the prince.

Lance had promised he wouldn’t take long. He said he would use the time where Allura was busy organising their attack to meet with Human-Keith and warn him.

Hunk had a very straightforward opinion on Humans. They were dangerous, cunning, and not trustworthy. But he had to admit that Human-Keith didn’t seem so bad and he felt a bit worried when he imagined the black haired teen lost in the middle of a war. And Lance knew that.

His best friend knew exactly which buttons to press to have him help him easily. But helping Lance warning Keith about the imminent attack on humans didn’t change the fact that Hunk was regretting it. With all his mind and soul.

_This was a terrible idea. I shouldn’t have let him go. What the quiznack, Hunk? You know perfectly well he would go anyway. That’s right. He was going to go one way or another. This is not your fault._

The yellow tailed mermaid took another deep breath, involuntarily screaming when he heard a voice call his name, “Hunk? Have you seen Lance?”

It was Allura. Hunk gulped, forcing his voice out as naturally as he could, “No, I haven’t! I was actually looking for him.”

Allura eyed him with suspicion, her dazzling eyes, coming to study even the darkest corners of his soul. “Is there something I should know?” She asked almost innocently. But Hunk could hear the tone in her voice. The sharp edge that there was to it. A warning. A command. An order.

It was something that only royalty was known to be able to do.

While using that tone, anyone and everyone under their command would be unable to lie.

“Lance left the palace,” Hunk said, doing his best to hold out and hide Lance's secret while hoping that Allura wouldn’t push the matter much further.

But she would. Of course, she would.

They both knew it.

He took a deep breath, as he heard Allura voice ring in his ears, mumbling a silent prayer to the goddess, hoping she would give him strength and make Lance hurry back.

Before he ended up telling her everything.

 

* * *

  

Keith laid on the white sheets that covered his bed. His heart seemed to pick up the pace of Pidge’s typing speed, hurriedly beating against his chest. He took a deep breath, wishing that the warm air traveling out of his lungs was enough to ease his mind.

A pale hand reached under his dark t-shirt, pulling the string gently while he felt the cold crystal travel across his chest until it keeked out of his collar. He stared at the jewel, swinging it in front of his violet eyes. His free hand reached for the cold and transparent gem, enjoying its dim glow.

It was highly familiar. More than Keith cared to admit. It reminded him of Lance’s tattoos. How beautiful they were and how stunning they looked against his tanned skin.

He grabbed the crystal with his pale hand, holding it tight, and resting it against his chest without ever letting go of the necklace. Lance had wanted him to have it and to keep it closer the further they were away.

Keith couldn’t really deny him that. Or anything else, as a matter of fact.

He was guilty of keeping the necklace around his neck, crystal hanging close to his heart, all the time. He was guilty of thinking of Lance every time he felt it brush across his skin, the crystal cold jewel sending chills down his spine in the same way Lance’s hands did, every time they caressed Keith's skin.

And this time wasn’t any different.

Keith was thinking of him and he couldn’t shake the worry away. A consuming feeling that something was about to happen. Something beyond his power.

Another sigh left his lips. He looked ahead, staring at the ocean that spread in front of him.

He hated it.

The place where his parents were. The place where Shiro was. The place where Lance belonged. Those cold, dark depths would always haunt him to his grave, holding everyone he ever cared about.

It felt different to stare at the sea now. The emptiness and numbness that always seemed to invade him were no longer there. Every time he looked at the ocean he saw two dazzling eyes, filling him with a warmth that he had never really understood.

He knew that it was stupid, impulsive even, but he wanted to protect Lance. He wanted to safeguard his smile and the way his eyes lit up.

And that was the problem.

He had no way to do so.

_Uselessness._

He was useless. He couldn’t do anything to stop what was coming. He did warn Lance about it, trying to tell him as much info as he could.

Hopping Lance would stay safe.

Hoping that Lance could forgive him for having to hurt his own people.

Hoping that Lance wouldn’t realise how powerless he was.

He couldn’t do anything.

Keith wanted to find Shiro. For that, he had to remain in the Garrison.

But staying in the Garrison meant hurting those that Lance cared about.

_Guilt._

He hated it, and he hated himself for being this weak and powerless. He hated how the only way he could have a chance to find his brother - how the only he had to see Lance - rested on him stayingenrolledin the garrison, hurting those Lance wanted to protect. 

He couldn’t stop thinking about what Iverson had told them that morning. The older commander had gathered most of the students of Keith’s and other classes, addressing them a very direct message.

It was time. They were going to attack.

And Keith could hear it in his voice. He knew Pidge had heard it too.

It was big. And it was for real this time.

The higher ups had something in mind. A big plan. Keith figured they were probably after the crystal, but, from what Iverson had told them, their mission looked completely different.

_“This mission holds the utmost importance” the commander declared, silencing the room immediately with his words, “It may not seem like much, but the circumstances have proven that before we can eradicate the mermaids once and for all, we need to know more about them.” There seemed to be some protest noises coming from the audience, but Iverson ignored them, proceeding unfazed, “That is why this mission will focus mainly on capturing one of those sea monsters, alive!”_

Keith had hated how excited the crowd had sounded at that. Like kids excited to get a new toy. It made him realise who surrounded him. Bloodthirsty creatures, desperate to prove themselves on the battlefield. Ready to make a name for themselves, and without the slightest drop of respect or compassion for their enemy.

Why should they, anyway? They had been taught that way. That mermaids were nothing more than sea monsters, ready to kill them at sight, ripping them apart with their fangs and claws.

But Keith knew better. And that only made it worse.

He was stuck between wanting to stop this madness and having no way of doing so. He wanted to get out there and tell everyone what he had learned. Tell everyone that mermaids were not their enemy and that the war is a facade. But every time he looks at the eyes of his own comrades, he knew it is a lost cause. No one would ever believe him.

No one would even _want_ to believe him. Mermaids being evil, heartless monsters worked for them. It’s so much easier to go with the flow, to accept what you’re told without questioning it. It’s so much easier to ignore it when someone points it out.

It was a lost battle.

Keith knew that without undeniable proof, it was impossible to stop this war.

And that thought scared him.

The garrison controlled their society completely. Trying to prove they were the only one to blame, was like declaring war at the government itself. It was asking to be sent to prison. Probably even killed.

He was powerless against them, and therefore, the only thing he could do was warn Lance about their attack. And hope he had more luck than him.

His hand tucked the necklace harder, like, somehow, that could send his strength to Lance.

He wished that Lance could keep everyone safe. He hoped that Lance himself was safe. Longing to see him again, one more time before he had to march into battle. But he knew he couldn’t.

“It’s time!” He heard Pidge’s laptop closing sound, and soon his roommate was climbing off the bed. Keith’s heart skipped a beat, eyes coming to stare at the ocean once more before he looked back at the soft brown eyes.

“I know…” His  voice sounded different than normal, but Pidge didn’t seem to pay much mind to it, “Let’s go!”

 

* * *

 

_Something big is going to happen, Lance. Commander Iverson told us this morning, that tomorrow we’re all going to be part of an important mission._

 

Lance couldn't get the sound of Keith’s voice out of his mind. The way his tone sounded so worried, yet at the same time, completely lost, made Lance’s chest tighten and his throat grow dry.

He really wanted to do something. No. He really needed to do something.

He wanted to stop this stupid war. Nothing about it made sense, and there was clearly a really big misunderstanding going on.

And that was the problem. At least, one of the problems.

According to Keith, something big was going to happen. He didn't know exactly what it was, but he knew it and he had decided to warn Lance about it. And that was what frightened him the most.

Many more attacks had happened while they were meeting, but this time, Keith had actually gone through and informed Lance about it. He wasn’t joking.

Maybe he could say that Keith was even a bit scared of what was to come. Lance would be lying if he said he wasn’t. 

He himself knew that his sister and the nobles were preparing to attack, and that would result in nothing more than a battlefield. A bloody battle where lives would definitely be lost. On both sides of this war.

And that was why he had left Keith and was returning to Altea so soon. He had to talk to Allura.

He knew perfectly well that his sister, more than him, was completely devastated by the death of their father. And, even tho, she had risen up from the ashes of his death, gifting Altea with a great leader, that was ready and willing to fight for their people, Lance just knew better.

He knew his sister was still recovering from what had happened. Just like he was.

He knew Allura was close to their father much more than him, and he knew that she wanted to continue his legacy.

Even avenge him.

Allura wanted to fight humans, and give them a taste of their own medicine. Make them pay for what they had done to them.

Lance didn't agree completely with her. But he understood.

He comprehended why she was so desperate to fight them. Humans had been responsible not just for killing their parents, but for trying to destroy their society, capturing many mermaids and killing many, many more.

Allura wasn't wrong.

_But her eagerness was blinding her._

Lance knew his sister, maybe better than anyone would actually believe, so he knew perfectly well that Allura wouldn't want to harm any innocent lives.

She wouldn't want anyone to have to go through what she did. And that was why Lance had to man up and talk to her. He had to warn her about everything he knew. Everything he had learned. Everything he had been told.

He needed to tell Allura about the human’s plan to attack them, and how if they stayed inside Altea, under the crystal's protection, no harm would come to them or anyone else. Or at least, that they could save much more lives.

Besides, if Keith's theories were right, the garrison would try to take the crystal and that meant they needed more guards protecting it than fighting on the front lines.

He dived quietly, focusing on how he should explain everything to her. The exact words he should use to clarify how dangerous it was to retaliate.

Lance was the only one that could do it. And he knew it.

He didn't want Allura to regret her decisions and end up thinking of herself as a killer. He knew it was dangerous and that she would be mad at him for deceiving her, but he had to take the risk. He was the only one that knew this. The only one that could tell her.

It was the best option to keep everyone safe.

Keith was right. Fighting would only make things worst. It would only give humans and mermaids more reasons to hate each other, lighting up the fire of their differences more.

Lance took a deep breath when he spotted the white long hair shifting with the currents. He swam faster, words playing on repeat on his mind, as a soft reminder that he couldn't screw this up.

“Allura!” The dazzling mermaid stopped, looking back at her brother, “I need to talk to you.”

“Lance!” she echoed, face painted in worry, but also something more, that Lance couldn't quite decipher. “I've been looking for you.”

_Oh quiznack… That can't be good._

“Listen,” he said. The plan to look for a better spot to talk long forgotten in the worry that Allura would punish him for leaving the castle before he could even start to tell her everything. “This is very important, so please, just listen for a while.”

“I already know!” She merely said. Face stoic, while her eyes stared back at the prince. Lance could read her like water.

Allura _was_ mad.

Her words lingered a second longer in Lance's ears, making his heart speed up in anticipation. What _exactly_ did she know?

“Allura… I can explain.” He offered, pronouncing every word carefully. “But, right now, you have to listen to me. The-”

“I've already heard enough.”

Piercing cold.

That was how her voice felt as it cut through Lance's words.

He stopped, eyes widening in surprise and mouth agape. His heart was frenetic in his chest, stealing every word from Lance's mouth.

It became especially hard to breath when her words sank into him.

_She knew_.

She knew everything he had done.

He kicked the though to the back of his mind, taking a deep breath on the process, remembering that what he had to tell her was far too important to back down. It didn’t matter if she knew. It didn't matter if she was mad. It didn't matter if he was going to be punished. He had to tell her everything. That was the only way to protect everyone. “Allura. I know you're mad. I know I did wrong. I- I should’ve told you, but I,” he looked to the side for a split second, eyes looking back at the pink tailed mermaid with the determination just a moment after, “I was afraid. But not anymore,”

“Lance. I don't have time for this!” She simply stated. She wasn't just mad. She was also feeling betrayed.

He knew it.

Lance bit his own lips, fists clenching, gathering the strength he no longer had. He had to do it. He had to tell her, no matter the consequences.

“Allura, please. You have to stop this. The humans are attacking tonight. They have weapons like nothing you've ever faced before. It's too dangerous.” Was what he told her. Yet she barely heard half of it, voice raising above Lance's.

“Humans are nothing more than arrogant liars. I refuse to believe a word that comes from them.”

“Then, believe in me instead!” Allura's neck turned around till her eyes stared back at her brother's blue ones, “If you go out there, a lot of innocent people will die in a bloody war that is nothing more than a misunderstanding.”

“Have you completely lost your mind?” she asked, glancing down at the blue tailed mermaid, “Our father and mother died because of this war! And I’m not letting humans have their way after our family’s,” she corrected herself, “our people’s sacrifice.”

“Allura, please. Listen, I,”

“What you're telling me. What you have to tell me. Is it a message from that human?”

Lance couldn't even be mad at Hunk for telling her. “Yes. He tol-”

“Humans say nothing more than lies. That thing could have told you fake information to lure us into a trap. I won’t drag anyone into a trap. I’m not sacrificing our people’s fate for the words of a human.”

“Keith isn't a liar! He is telling the truth!” Lance's eyes were starting to water, more from indignation than sadness.

Allura almost gasped, face filled with disgust and hatred, “Don't you even dare.” She spat, clearly offended by Lance's simple words. “Humans are monsters! They have killed father, and tried to destroy our entire civilization! They are-”

Lance was shouting over his sister's voice, “We've killed them too.” Allura’s eyes widened, frozen for a second that Lance took with pleasure, “We’ve killed them and hurt them in horrible ways too. They're afraid because they don't know the truth!”

Allura shocked her head as if herself couldn't believe what she was hearing. “I… I thought you of all people would understand my pain.”

“Allura, I know how you-”

“NO!” Her voice loud and fierce left Lance shaking, “You don't know. You don't understand. You've betrayed your own people for your stupid interest in humans.”

“Al-”

“You've broken all of our rules, exposed our society to humans and jeopardized everyone!” She couldn’t even hold her words back, “Your interest for humans blinding you to the point where you’ve endangered everyone!" She stared at him, eyes piercing cold, "You're no prince of Altea!”

Lance's eyes widened, heart twitching like every word was a knife piercing his chest, leaving him breathless.

“I can't allow this.” The confused, yet pleading look he sent her was probably enough, because she soon clarified, “You've deceived me and forsaken your own people, caring for nothing more than yourself while putting everyone in jeopardy,” She sighed, “But _you are_ my brother and I could never hurt you.” Lance let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding, “Yet, I can not let a human hold so much knowledge of us and our society.”

Lance stopped, words frozen on his throat before he could speak them.

_Keith._

_She wanted to..._

“No…” Lance said weakly, lost on his own doubts, “Nononono… Allura-”

“I will kill him myself if I have to!”

_She wanted to kill Keith._

There was no hesitation in her words, voice clear as the water around them.

_It’s my fault._

“Allura, please! Please! Don’t hurt him!” Lance swam closer to the other mermaid, staring at her fierce eyes, “Take it out on me! I did this! I was the one that approached him. Not him. He didn’t do anything wrong. Please. Don’t _hurt_ him.”

“You brought this upon yourself. And you know that I can not allow our entire civilization to be threatened, because of one of your whims. He knows too much! I can not allow this!”

“Keith won’t say anything. He isn't going to-” he stopped, easily realising that his speech wouldn’t get him anywhere, “I’ll never leave the castle again!” he offered, despair suffocating his words, “I’ll never go to the surface again. I’ll help with all the diplomatic matters. I won’t do it again. I,” he swallowed a hiccup, “Please, just, please, don’t hurt him.”

Allura sighed, “Indeed, you won’t.” Her eyes looked back at her brother, “Guards,” her voice was loud, yet still compassionate enough, “Take my brother to one of the upper cells. And make sure he _stays_ there.” She ordered as soon as they appeared.

“You can’t be serious, Allura!” Lance’s arms rose as he spoke, “You’re sending _me_ to prison?”

“We both know perfectly well that you will disobey my orders to stay in your room otherwise.”

“Allura. No. Please. You can't do this!”

Lance tried to fight back the guards when he felt their hand on him. Keeping him down.

“I’m doing this for your own good, Lance. Because I care about you. Because you’re the only family I have left and I can’t let you get yourself killed.”

His vision was a blur. Words buried deep in his throat, muffled by the sobs that insisted on leaving him breathless.

“Take him.” She simply said. Her back was turned to Lance, and she didn’t even bother to look at him, as the guards took him away,

“Allura!” Allura wait!” he screamed. Tears burned down his face, “You can’t do this, Allura! You’re going to regret it, please! Stop! Please! _For once in your life will you just listen to me!_ ” Each word was lost in the echo across the corridors as the guards dragged him away. “Keith is not a threat you can’t- Please. They’re coming to take the crystal. You’re putting everyone in danger!” His words dried on his own mouth. Voice was sore, and the hiccups came like a river when he tried to breathe.

_It was over._

It was all over. He had screwed it all.

Lance bit his own lip, in a sad attempt to stop his sobs.

It was all his fault. He had been the one that had stayed when Keith wanted to him leave. He had been the one asking for answers when Keith had barely even managed to tolerate his presence. He was the one that kept him from leaving.

Damn his curiosity for humans and their society.

He knew the rules. He knew them all. He knew this could happen. He knew it all, yet...

_I should have just left him on the beach when I found him,_ he thought, drowning in regret, _It’s all my fault! My fault! I did this. I ruined everything._

Lance’s mind went completely blank as the thought sank into him, _She’s going to kill him._

Keith never did anything wrong. Keith with his stupid hair and perfect smile. Dazzling violet eyes and beautiful laugh. The only person that ever looked at Lance as an equal and not as a spoiled prince that could never do anything right.

He sobbed, will to fight long forgotten when he realised that he would never see him again. He would never be able to say goodbye or apologize.

Keith would die because of him and the only thing Lance could do was cry his every regret.

He just wished he had him in his arms again, close enough to the point where he didn't know if he was listening to his heartbeat or Keith's.  

He just wished to hold him tight, kissing his swollen red lips.

He just wished he could look one last time at those violet eyes, crimson painting his cheeks when he smiled fondly at him.

No.

This wasn’t it. This was not what he wanted.

He just wished he had never met him. Never talked to him.

He wished he still hated humans with all his heart for what they had done him to and to his family.

He wished that he still believed humans to be monsters.

He just wished he hadn’t stayed long enough to see the good side of him or how soft his smile could be.

He wished he had never learned that they could be good. That they were good too.

 

He wished he had never loved him.

Because that way, Keith would still be alive by the end of the day.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That amazing moment when your friend just gives you an awesome idea at the last second. Thank you, Bibs!!!  
>    
>  Also, this chapter was supposed to be published yesterday but I opened Tumblr and saw the new trailer and omg... yeah... Where the fuck is Keith, my son? I'm so worried. >.< I ended up thinking of so many different theories that by the end of the night I had thought a very angsty AU based on them (and stuff/opinions I read on Tumblr too).  
>    
>  So, college hit me very hard, literally had 3 days of classes and I'm already dying... So updates on weekends are completely impossible for me. New update schedule will me Mondays or Tuesdays. I'll try to not delay this cuz I know this cliffhanger is a bit mean. (I'm so sorry I'm not sorry...)  
>    
>  Also, a small warning that **the following chapters - especially chapter 9 - will be quite angsty.** I'm saying this because I have the feeling that I've misled some people to think this is going to be just fluff all over. So please, if you don't like angst or you're not comfortable reading it, please be careful with the following chapters, especially the next one.  
>    
>  Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed this. Thank you for all the feedback, lovely comments, kudos, subs and bookmarks. Thank you for reading and get ready for the angst rollercoaster that is coming.


	9. Chapter 9

_Darkness._

The night sky was painted in shades of black, sprinkled with a few glowing stars. Keith’s eyes lingered a moment longer at the sky, observing how the moon seemed to glow stronger than usual tonight.

“How long has it been?” he heard the sound coming from his left. His eyes turned instantly like he could see the person that had talked, through the immense darkness.

“I’m not sure…” Another voice replied with uncertainty. “One hour? Maybe just half? I don't know, dude...”

Keith’s eyes moved again, settling back to the sky. The cradling movement of the ship where they were was growing into him. The waters were as dark as the sky and it was completely impossible to see through them.

“According to the position of the moon in the sky…” he heard Pidge’s voice from his right. “I’d say… It should be close to midnight. Probably a bit less, since it’s summer.”

“No one asked you!” Another voice protested.

Keith sighed, not even bothering to look where the sound had come from.

His mind drifted, _It should be close to midnight_ , Pidge had said. That meant, they’d been standing there, waiting for something to happen, for over an hour.

He was glad nothing had happened, actually.

Keith leaned against the side of the ship, eyes studying the movements of the waves as if they were sentences of a book.

Their mission was simple. And that _was exactly_ the problem.

Iverson hadn’t told them much, omitting a big part of the whole plan.

Basically, there were various teams assigned to the mission, and each one had a different objective they had to accomplish in order for the big mission to be a success. Keith didn’t know the details of the goal of any other team but his own. In a way, it made memorizing the details and preparing easier, but, it also left them completely clueless about what others could be doing.

And that worried him more than he cared to admit.

“I don’t like this…” Another voice sounded, “Where are _those things?_ Shouldn’t they’ve shown up by now?”

Keith licked his drying lips, swallowing hard soon after.

He hated to admit it, but that guy was completely right.

It was strange that not even a single mermaid had shown up. A smile peered in Keith’s lips, _Lance did it._ Because that had to be the reason. Lance had warned the mermaids and they decided to stay away.

“What’s with that thing anyways…” Neal asked, probably trying to lift up the mood, or just out of curiosity.

“Hmm? What?”

The cadet pointed towards the giant tower that could be seen from their location.

“The lighthouse?” Pidge asked and Neal nodded, “What about it?”

“I had no idea we still used those!”

“Don’t you pay attention to our classes?” Neal’s friend teased.

“We don’t have any about lighthouses, you dumb idiot!”

“Those lighthouses we build centuries ago and they're still operational. Their main objective is to allow us to have better visibility to scout the shores during night.” Pidge explained proudly, receiving a couple of awed replies tangled up with the usual ‘not again’ or ‘shut up, Pidge’. “Out of curiosity, even tho we have electricity, Lighthouses still run with fire.”

“Lame…”

“I guess it was too troublesome to link them up to our power source? Mermaids probably kept destroying the cables to take the lighthouses out.”

“Makes sense.” Neal agreed, patting the smaller cadet in the top of the head, making Pidge send him a mortal gaze.

_Cold._

A soft wind blew, easily tousling his hair. He made quick work of it, immediately tying it in a ponytail.

“Keith?” Pidge’s hand landed on his arm. “I don’t like this. Something… Just doesn’t feel right...”

He hated to admit it, but he felt it too. A weird feeling, like the air was too heavy to breathe or the waves weren’t swinging naturally. He hated it especially because it felt like he was doubting Lance and his ability to prevent this battle from being catastrophic.

He wanted to believe in his friend and in his ability to ease this fight. But, something. Something just felt wrong.

Pidge’s brown eyes gazed at him carefully, “We’ve been here for an hour. This wasn’t supposed to take this long!”

Keith looked away, absorbing his friend’s words easily, while his thumb kept rubbing against his finger. When Iverson had first given them the description of what their mission was, he had felt his stomach drop to his feet.

 _And finally, group delta will have the most important task. The success of our mission depends on your ability to complete this task and that’s why only the best of you have been assigned._ Iverson took a deep breath, allowing his words to settle down in everyone that was listening to him, _“You 7 brave cadets will have to attract the mermaid’s towards your ship.”_ The confusion and anxiety were evident, _“I believe you all are the only ones with the skill to do so.”_

Bait.

When he looked at Pidge back then, he knew his little friend was thinking the exact same thing. Their task was nothing more than being bait.

Pidge raised an arm, easily winning Iverson’s attention, “I’m sorry Sir. But there are other students with scores better than mines. Especially on field missions, I-”

“It was not a mistake, Gunderson.” He answered meaningly looking back at the small figure, “But we believe your brains might come in handy if something goes wrong.”

 

“Do you consider ‘No mermaids showing up’ as something going wrong?” Pidge asked him calling Keith out of his mind who stopped stimming.

“I’m cool with it.” Keith smiled back, trying to make his friend relax a bit. Pidge did, smiling back.

_Screams._

Their heads turned around, at the loud cry from one of their teammates.

“They’re here!”

 _Shit…_ Keith’s mind screamed. He looked straight ahead, immediately finding a  lonely figure in the waters. Eyes cast low, lighted softly thanks to the glowing marks near them. It was a burning orange color, that looked nothing alike the soft gleaming light from Lance’s tattoos.

He felt a wave of relieved when he noticed that the mermaid’s hair wasn’t white, mumbling it under his breath. Pidge looked at him confused, but said nothing. They had more important matters to take care of, after all.

The mermaid wasn’t moving, simply staring back at them from the shadows of the night.

This was it.

He was torn between helping capture the mermaid or sabotage their capturing mission. A hard choice he still couldn’t make. First things first. And the first thing on his list was surviving.

Keith nostalgically remembered Shiro’s advice, _When on field mission remember to always stay out of the water. Mermaids have all the advantage underwater. Never fall off the boat._

He would start there.

Keith took a step forward, moving towards the mermaid that had just appeared, ambitioning to proceed with their plan. Only one had shown up, which would actually make things easier for them. More mermaids would just make everything harder for them, and reduce their chances of surviving. Yet, Keith found it extremely unusual for only one to show up.

Lance had never told him much about the altean army or even about altean magic, but Keith did know that mermaids rarely attacked alone.

He let out a small whelp when he felt something reach him, arms circling around his own, forcing with to stagger back. A gasp left his lungs before he could even process what was happening. He saw Pidge’s little hands reach towards him, his pale ones desperately trying to grab them. But it was useless.

He was going to fall.

His back crashed against the ice cold waters, splashing them in a helpless sound that dragged across them like wildfire.

Pidge pulled what looked like a gun from the belt that hung loosely around the torso, aiming it at the waters.

“No! Stop that!” Someone screamed from behind the small cadet, “You’ll electrocute everyone!”

“Oh don’t say…” Came the sarcastic reply, “I wasn’t going to fire, idiot!”

Pidge’s brown eyes looked to the side noticing that Keith hadn’t been the only one getting pulled down to the waters.

What happened to them? Did they need to help them? Were they dead?

The questions circled the brown haired cadet. “There’s nothing we can do for them!” Pidge said, hating the words more than anyone else, “They know what to do in case of falling into the sea. We can’t just jump to our deaths too!”

“We’re all going to die!” Another cadet shouted from the opposite side.

“Keep your shit together or I’ll push you overboard!” Pidge snarled.

 _This has to be organized attack,_ the thought crossed the astute mind, _But why? Did they know about our plan? This doesn’t look like a coincidence, but, first things first…_

“We need to stay away from the edges of the boat!” Pidge ordered, voice coming out much louder than usual.

“Are we aborting the mission?” The blond guy next to Pidge asked.

“Not exactly. But we’re prioritizing our lives!” Two other cadets came to join them. “We need to regroup and figure out a plan.”

“Don’t you mean, _YOU need to figure out a plan?_ ” Pidge sighed. “You’re the resident genius here. Do your thing!”

The petite cadet was ready to mumble out a complaint, but a movement in the waters made them all stop.

“What’s that?”

“Get ready! They’re coming!”

They stayed in position, ready to attack whatever monster jumped out of the waters, but to their surprise, a quite familiar mullet surfaced instead.

“Keith!” Pidge screamed, immediately running to the edge of the boat, orders long forgotten. Keith’s purple eyes observed as his small friend leaned to pull him, but the pale and thin arms could barely reach close to where he was. Another one of his teammates approached them, easily giving Keith a hand and helping him climb overboard again.

“What happened out there? Are you ok?” Pidge questioned, worry beaming from the hazelnut eyes. “I thought you were a goner! How the hell-”

Keith coughed, salt burning in his throat even though he had barely even swallowed any water,  “We don’t have time for this now, Pidge!”

“Guess your scores weren’t a joke Kogane.” Some blond guy joked, but Keith waved him off.

“We have to get out of here before they attack again!”

That’s right. He had to get everyone away from this place.

When he fell out of the boat, the cold water immediately surrounded him. Keith’s eyes had looked to the left, where he saw a couple more of his comrades being bragged to the bottom.

He instinctively fought back, squirming against the mermaid’s hold on his body. But it was useless, the pressure of the deepening waters forcing him to give out. He wanted to help the others, but all he could do was watch as their bodies became limb.

His vision started to burl, and before he knew it would be over soon.

He knew what he had to do. He knew everything about mermaids, probably more than anyone else on land, yet, everything he had learned was useless if he didn’t get a chance to do it.

But that wasn’t enough to make him give up.

He had made a promise to Lance and he planned on keeping it.

It was only for a split moment, but that was all the time Keith needed.

The mermaid’s hold on him died out for a second, and the human made quick work of it, ready to turn the tides in his favor. He went for the interdigital membrane, tucking it with his nails as hard as he could. To Keith’s surprise, it actually seemed to work. The mermaid cried out in pain, pulling away from him. He didn’t hesitate a second, immediately surfacing, desperate for air.

In the last moment, he peered down into the dark depths. His heartbeat speed up for a second, as he noticed the endless glowing marks. More than he could dare to count.

“We can’t just leave without a mermaid! Iverson will have our head for failing!” The voice called him back to reality.

“Yeah!” Pidge agreed, “We have them here now! We just have to keep them around for a bit longer, so the other team can come in and do their part!”

“You’re not understanding!” Keith shouted, “If we stay here we die!”

“Hush Kogane! I know you just escaped death itself dude, but-”

“Three other guys just died.” His right arm moved to the side, in an attempt to emphasize his point, “There are -”

“Keith! You almost died! Just take a break. We can do this! We have to do this!” Pidge told him.

“Wait, Pidge! There are too many mermaids down there! We have to get out of here before-”

It was sudden. How the cold wind blew towards them a sweet melody. Keith looked around, swallowing hard the lump in his throat as he spotted the mermaids circling them from all sides. Their tattoos intense glow was highlighted in the darkening night.

“Pidge!” Keith called, running to his friend. The brown haired cadet, just like everyone else seemed to be in a trance, taking step after step towards the edge of the boat.

Keith knew what was happening.

“Pidge! Snap out of it!” He shook his friend, eyeing what was happening to the others from the corner of his purple eye.

“Matt… You’re finally home.”

“Pidge! What you’re seeing isn’t real!” But it was no use. He knew he couldn’t break a mermaid spell that easily. Keith was really regretting not having asked Lance more about altean magic. He had always assumed Lance wouldn’t be too comfortable talking about it, so he never asked any questions about it.

Lance’s necklace had come to rest over his uniform, probably pulled out of his confinement, during Keith’s almost death experience.

His hand reached for it, trying to hide the growing beaming soft blue light.

“Lance?… What is this thing?” Keith mumbled, realizing that the necklace was probably the reason why he wasn’t being affected by the mermaid’s humming.

The black haired cadet smiled, hiding the necklace back under his shirt, even if the glowing light from it was still visible.

 _“I want you to have it!”_ He could hear Lance insisting voice, easily reminding him of how he smiled nostalgically, _“It's a gift. It will keep you safe!”_

Lance had told him that. That the necklace would keep him safe.

He took a deep breath.

He wasn’t going to die. He had made a promise and he intended to keep it. But, just remembering how easily it had been for mermaids to drown his teammates, gave him the strength he needed.

Keith didn’t want this mission to turn into Kerberos 2.0. He didn’t want to see his comrades dying, sacrificing their lives for a cause that was nothing but a facade.

He looked at the moon, admiring her beautiful light. Admiring the light that cast down on them.

_Please forgive me for this…_

He ran towards the electrical charge gun Pidge had dropped to the floor just moments ago and regulating the voltage, aimed it towards the waters.

His pale finger pressed the trigger, and instantly an electrical charge was sent to the waters. The humming was over instantly, replaced by screaming tones that send chills down Keith's spine.

Pidge and the others fell like puppets whose master had stopped playing with.

Keith ran towards the edge of the ship, rapidly analyzing their situation as he looked at the waters. The mermaid had disappeared, diving down to the depths. Still, he found none of them floating at the surface, which was good. He had purposely reduced the voltage in hope he wouldn’t kill anyone.

“Keith? What happened?”

He looked at his friend, noticing Pidge’s dizzy posture. The others seemed to be coming out of their own trances too. Keith took a deep breath.

_This is only going to make them madder. There has to be a way to permanently keep them away._

“Keith? What is going on? Why is everything so fuzzy?”

“You were under a siren’s spell! They’re coming soon! We have to stop them!”

“Dude! Calm down!” A hand came to rest on Keith’s shoulder, “I’m sure the other team is coming to aid as soon.”

“No one is coming!” Keith offered, his temper showing off. “I looked around when I was down there, and instead of seeing the darkness of the depths, the whole ocean was lit by their glowing tattoos.” He could feel everyone’s eyes on him, mouth agape in horror, “That’s just how much more of them are down there!”

“They wouldn’t just- The Garrison will come to rescue us!”

Keith really wanted to scream that the Garrison didn’t give a shit about them, but he forced himself to keep his temper in check, “They’re probably in the same situation we are! If they’re under attack they can’t come to our aid!”

“We’re on our own!” Pidge agreed. Keith looked at the hazelnut eyes, studying how Pidge took a deep breath before speaking. “Everyone get in position. Grab your weapons.”

“That didn’t work before!” Someone pointed out. He was right, but there wasn’t much they could do.

“Just shoot as soon as you see movement in the waters! If they can’t get to the surface they won't sing and therefore we won't be under their spell.”

Keith bit his own lip, mind racing. There had to be a way to survive without having to kill mermaids. He looked around, hoping an idea would come to him. He just needed a way to keep the mermaid away. He just needed-

_Even tho we have electricity, lighthouses still run with fire._

His eyes widened when he saw the lighthouse. The glowing flame peering at him from the distance was like a good omen in the darkness.

Fire.

According to Lance, mermaids were completely terrified of fire. If he lit the whole place up, he would be able to keep them away.

Now, he just needed something that would easily get set on fire. Something that would remain above the waters, burning till they could make their escape.

Keith didn’t hesitate, dodging some cadets as he walked towards the cabin of the ship. He knew perfectly well that some spare fuel was stored there in case something happened.

“Keith? What are you doing?” Pidge asked, eyes wide open.

“Whatever I can!” He declared, storming inside the cabin to look for the fuel.

He didn’t have much of a plan, but he had to take the opportunity to get closer to the lighthouse now that the mermaids were recovering.

Keith easily found one of the **drums** where the fuel was stored, remembering they had learned the exact spot where it should be stored in one of their classes.

He walked out of the cabin again, eyes looking towards the moon in a silent prayer that only the ocean could understand.

“Pidge! Keep them distracted for me!” He pulled out his knife and made a small cut in the container.

“Keith! What the hell are you up to? We have to stick together!” Keith attached the drum to his belt, giving it a few experimental tugs to make sure it wouldn’t fall off, “Keith?!”

He walked towards the edge of the boat, looking at Pidge for a moment, “I have a plan!”

“Keith? Whatever you’re thinking about doing I can 100% see it’s a bad idea!”

“If it goes well,” He looked back at the moon, a desperate need to keep a simple promise from dying giving him the strength to do something crazy. “We’ll see each other again soon!”

It was the only thing he said before he jumped overboard.

 

* * *

 

“Hunk! Hunk!” Lance called threading his arms through the bars. “Buddy!”

“Oh my goddess, Lance! You look terrible!” The yellow tailed mermaid hurried to his friend, instantly noticing how tired he seemed. Lance looked like he had more 10 years on his shoulders from one day to the other, and Hunk couldn’t really pinpoint what made him look like that. He positioned himself in front of the round barred opening that was large enough to be used as the cell door. “I can’t believe what Coran told me is actually true?”

Lance sighed, looking away. Obviously, Hunk already knew what had happened, yet the questioning tone in his voice was a subtle demand for Lance to clarify all the details.

But he didn’t really want to talk about it. The prince had bigger problems than the rumors that were definitely being spread across Altea after what had happened.

“Ok Hunk, please buddy just listen! You have to get me out of here right now!”

Hunk furrowed, lips pursing, as he spoke in a soft whisper, “You know I can’t do that…” 

“Buddy, please!” The prince begged silently, hoping no one but Hunk could hear him. He leaned against the bars, “Allura didn’t listen to me! She isn’t just putting everyone in danger with this attack. She also wants to kill Keith! Please, Hunk! You have to help me out, man! I have to do something!”

“Lance, calm down!” The yellow tailed mermaid didn’t even seem to be panicking. Which was rare. His voice, compared to how desperate Lance's sounded, seemed surprisingly collected. Even if Lance knew Hunk was completely freaking out on the inside. “First tell me what happened with Allura.”

“Hunk! We don’t have time for this! She’s going to find Keith and kill him and it’s all my fault.” Lance clenched his hand into fists, hitting the bars in frustration soon after, “Keith never asked for any of this! I was the one that dragged him into this mess when I started to meet with him! I have to fix it!”

“Lance, just breathe. Ok? Allura doesn’t even know what he looks like. I’m sure he will be fine!”

The prince let out a desperate cry, something between a wretched whimper and a distressed prayer. His hand came to rest on his own chest. “You see this?” Hunk eyed him confused, but it didn’t take him long.

“Hmm… Lance? Oh- Your necklace? It’s gone! What happened? Did you lose it?”

“No, Hunk! I didn’t lose it I gave it to Keith! Because I wanted-” Lance swallowed up a hiccup between the realization of how much he had screwed up, “I just wanted him to have something that was mine. I never thought I would be sending him to his death when I asked him to keep it close. I just wanted to -” Blue eyes looked up at his friend’s brown ones, “Hunk I screwed up so bad, please just- Please just help me out of here so I can-”

“Oh goddess, Lance! What have you done? I told you this ‘meeting with a human’ thing was a bad idea! But you never quiznacking listen to anyone!”

“Please, Hunk! Just get me the keys to open this thing or something. I’ll save Keith and stop Allura, I’ll-”

“How? Exactly!?” Hunk’s voice rose considerably, compared quiet whispers both of them had been exchanging, “How exactly do you plan to do that, Lance? You don’t have any magic, you can’t use a siren scream... You-” Hunk went quiet when the prince let out a pained yelp. He didn’t seem to fake it, hands dashing to grab his head. “Lance? Are you ok? What happened?”

Lance gritted his teeth, only managing to spit a couple of painful grunts.

The mermaid closed his blue eyes, desperately trying to ignore the painful headache that seemed to be growing in his mind. He could feel the cold waters around him and see a familiar darkness.  He could see a couple more humans drowning as they were dragged to the bottom.

_Fear. Despair. Hopelessness._

Feelings that wasn’t his traveled down his veins, the emotions coming in a mix that tangled with his own fears.

Lance could feel his body struggling against its captor and the growing need to breathe. He felt so useless, the thriving strength of the ocean only pushed him deeper and deeper, into the nothingness where he could only see dark. Maybe his vision was blurring or maybe he was just too deep into the abyss. His eyes widen at the sight of a familiar glowing crystal that appeared right in front of them.

He was back to his cell in a moment. Hunk was calling his name over and over again, voice worried and eyes reflecting how distress he was. Lance took his surroundings in first, waiting for a moment before he spoke,  “Keith. Keith is in danger.”

“Lance? You’re not making any sense.”

The prince’s voice was way louder than he intended it to, “Keith! He-”

He stopped, knowing his friend wouldn’t understand. Lance wasn’t quite sure what had happened too, but he didn’t have time to figure it out. He just knew it. Keith was in danger, drowning somewhere in the vast ocean, and it was all his fault. He had to do something.

He swam towards the bars, hoping he could break them enough to allow him to escape.

“Lance! What the quiznack, man? Stop! You’re going to hurt yourself!”

The prince ignored, getting some distance between himself and the bars, just to crash against them again.

This was his problem. This was his fight. He didn’t have the right to ask Hunk for help. He had to fix what he had done on his own.

He crashed against the bars again, this time putting a bit more strength and feeling his body protest.

Hunk complained again, “You’re going to hurt yourself! Lance?” Yet, he withdrew from the bars. Lance, to Hunk’s relieve, stopped. He watched the prince looking at something behind him, but before he could say anything or ask him what was going on Lance was speaking.

“Are you...?” Lance’s eyes were on the figure in front of him. He was in a cell on the other side of the corridor, not the one directly in front of his, but near enough to see the inmates if he and the other were both close to the bars. “Are you... Shiro?”

The human seemed to be taken aback when he realised the mermaid was talking to him. His mouth agape and his grey eyes wide open. He looked like the guy in the photo Keith had shown him weeks ago, apart from some differences like the scar and the white hair.

“How do you know my name?” He merely said, and Lance wondered if he had even heard his and Hunk’s conversation.

“Lance! Could you, _please,_ stop befriending human!” Hunk protested looking between both of them, eyes moving from side to side to do so, “Hasn’t Keith been enough?”

“Keith?” Shiro mumbled. Lance eyed him carefully, studying how the human looked to his side, face focused like he was thinking. His expression brightened, before he prudently asked, “You know my brother?”

Lance beamed, “You _are_ Shiro!” Hunk was furrowing at his friend, but soon he connected the dots.

“Ahhhh! I remember!”

“This is so awesome!” Shiro seemed to be a bit lost, not really sure what was happening, yet Lance couldn’t help but smile.

The prince had been looking for Keith’s brother for a while now, just like he had promised he would. If Shiro had been taken prisoner than he had to be locked somewhere. Lance had never seen Keith so thankful before. It was quite adorable, and just remembering that, gave Lance the strength he needed to actually go inside the lower levels of the prison. The place was creepy as quiznack, and it wasn’t Lance’s fault for having some self-awareness and be wary of it. Besides, he had to be careful not to drag too much attention to him too, which by itself was already a difficult task. Yet, searching for him on the lower levels, never resulted in anything. Lance planned to keep the search, but, in the meantime, a lot had happened, and he never managed to resume the search.

“Who are you?” The human looked wary, “And how do you know my brother?”

“Oh Goddess! Keith is going to be so happy when I tell him!” Shiro’s confused grey eyes meet Lance’s and the mermaid quietly started, “My name is Lance. Keith and I are… friends.”

“That’s impossible! How did-?” Shiro knew that there was no way Keith could have gotten close to a beach. Unless... “What happened to Keith? Is he-?”

“We met some months ago but that’s a really long story…” Lance clarified, “I don’t really have time to explain now, but I promise I’ll get you out as soon as I can!”

“What?” The human only seemed to be more confused, “Why would you do such a thing?”

“Because I promised Keith I’d-”

 _Keith..._  

Everything went dark. Lance turned around but both Hunk and Shiro were gone. He was alone, surrounded by the cold dark waters of the sea. The prince could hear some muffled voices around him, but he couldn’t make it out what they said. He tried to focus, listening to the sounds around him.

_-th! Keith! You’re ... to …_

The feminine voice seemed desperate, screaming at full lungs above the waters, but Lance couldn’t make out its every word.

_Keith! Ple- You’re... yourself killed!_

Lance’s heartbeat sped up, anxiety rushing through his veins like blood. He tried to calm down, but it was useless. He was running out of breath, feeling too tired to swim.

His eyes started to recognise his surroundings. He was at the surface, the growing waves desperate to push him down. He looked back and saw a ship in the middle of what looked like a growing storm. There was a guy holding back a smaller human figure. The one doing the shouting Lance had heard.

He looked forward, noticing the unsettling waves, the growing mist and the frail glow from a lighthouse. It was hard to swim, the whole ocean fighting his every movement.

_Anxiety. Distress. Fear._

The emotions flooded like the waves that kept pushing him down. But there was more. He could feel an undying flame of determination that refused to be blown out.

His eyes focused downwards, where the ocean spread beneath him. So big. So vast. Lance’s blue eyes lingered for a bit longer, noticing the endless glowing altean marks that hid in the darkness. A particular familiar one called his attention.

It was Allura.

His vision blurred again followed by an already familiar pain.

He was being called back to reality, just like it had happened before. He could hear someone scream, but the sound was distant and unfamiliar.

Hunk saw his friend clench into a ball. His hand went for his head and his tattoos lit up from their normal blue hue to a white glow. Lance began to scream then.

It was like nothing the mermaid had ever seen. He sounded like a dying animal that had nothing left to lose.

“Lance? Lance! WHat’s going on? What is happening?”

But the blue tailed mermaid didn’t reply, voice giving out from screaming for so long. Hunk observed in horror how his friend’s hair turned completely white and his stunning eyes were no longer the beautiful shade of the ocean, but yes two hollowed orbs of light, glowing just like all his other markings.

This had never happened before. Hunk had never heard of anything like this ever happening to anyone before, being them royal or not.

He tried to call his friend out of it, hoping Lance would come back to his senses like it had happened before. But it didn’t seem to be working. The prince kept mumbling some weak whimpers, even after his voice gave out.

Hunk’s brown eyes watched as Lance’s tattoos settled back to their normal blue color, and soon after Lance was relaxing. He was panting heavily and had some tears in the corner of his eyes.

“Lance, buddy? You ok?”

“Yeah…” Even though the prince had answered he sounded completely spaced out. Like he wasn’t there at all.

Lance himself wasn’t sure if he was. He had heard Hunk’s questioning voice but he could hear so much more.

He could hear Allura giving out her orders. He could hear some humans screaming. He could hear the humming voices of other mermaids. He could hear the sound of ships moving through the waters. He could hear Keith’s panting breath and his speeding heartbeat.

He could hear anything and everything that was in the ocean. Feel the tides, the waves and the wind travel through his body like blood. It felt his.

“Lance? Lance! Are you listening to me!”

Blue eyes looked at his friend, “I’m fine. Never felt better my whole life.” He reached for the bars again, simply brushing his palm against them, and admired with pleased surprised how they froze.

“Awesome…” he mumbled behind Hunk’s concern.

“What the hell? Lance? What is that? How did you- Did you just?”

Lance clenched his hand, the gesture natural like he had done it a thousand times before, and observed the iced bars shatter to pieces.

“Holy crow… Lance! I know what you’re thinking, but that’s a bad idea…”

The prince wasn’t listening, grinning happily as he looked at his hand.  _Altean magic? I can use Altean magic..._

“You’ve never been out there! You don’t know how to fight in a war! Lance?”

“I can fix this!” The mermaid was staring back at his own hand, enjoying the sight before he closed them both into fists. He beamed in determination. “I’m going to fix everything!” The prince was smiling while he easily left his cell now that bars were gone.

Hunk tried to call him out again but Lance didn’t have time to lose.

Keith was in danger and it was his responsibility.

He swam as fast as he could, ignoring the worried warnings of his friend.

He knew it was dangerous. He knew he didn’t have the best understanding of wars or a battlefield, nor of his recently discovered powers, but he had been given an opportunity to fix things and he was going to take it.

They'd made a promise, after all.

And Lance intended to keep his part of the deal, _no matter what_.

 

* * *

 

“We’ll see each other again soon!”

Was the last thing Keith said before jumping into the waters.

He knew just as well as everyone else that _this_ was a _bad idea_. But he didn’t have much of a choice.

He couldn’t just stand still and do nothing while the world came undone around him. With his friends and comrades dying left his right and killing right and left, he didn’t exactly have the time to sit around and come up with the best course of action.

Keith had forced himself to think of a way to stop this, to keep mermaids and humans from attacking each other before there wasn’t anyone left.

The plan, if one could call his idea a plan, was simple.

Spill the fuel on the waters, trying to make some sort of barrier, and light it up.

He had looked around, hoping to find a lighter or something he could make fire with, but he found nothing. Which, in a way, made sense, but on the other hand was just highly convenient for mermaids.

Also, the fact that the ship was completely damp didn’t help. Using friction to start a sparkle wouldn’t get him far. And then, was when he remembered what Pidge had said hours ago.

The lighthouse, even tho electricity could be used there, was still running using fire.

Which, then again, was highly convenient to keep mermaids away.

If he could get a barrier of fire burning across the waters, he knew for sure the mermaids would back away and give them enough time to escape. In the middle of the confusion maybe they could even manage to catch one. But that wasn’t the point. The point was stopping this.

Still, better said than done.

The universe, that always seemed to despise Keith, was being particularly picky today.

The more he tried to swim forward the more it felt like the growing waves were pushing him far away. The winds were stronger than before and a mysterious mist seemed to begin to form keeping his goal slightly hidden, but still sufficiently on display to tease him.

His temper wasn’t helping. Nor was the floating container of the fuel, constantly bugging him as he tried to swim.

He looked around, taking in how ugly the weather had become from one moment to the other, while he tried not to think much about it. It reminded him of the many nightmares he had experienced during his sleepless nights. And, even tho he tried to push the thoughts away, it only left him warier.

Pidge was still screaming from the ship, “Keith! Keith! You’re going to get yourself killed!” The voice sounded extremely desperate and he almost felt bad. But he had to do this. He knew it was stupid and risky, but if no one did anything, they’d all be killed by the sea. “Keith! It’s too dangerous! Please! Come back!”

He took another stroke ignoring Pidge’s desperate pleas, “You’re going to get yourself killed!”

He peered back, taking the sight of the ship before turning forward once more. The lighthouse wasn’t that far away, but the way the waves kept fighting him, only delayed him more. And time wasn’t something he had.

Keith opened his eyes underwater during one of the strokes, air involuntarily leaving his mouth when he noticed the endless glowing spots under him.

He tried to ignore the fear that invaded his system.

 _I’m not going to die._ He repeated the words in his mind like a prayer, over and over again.

But the gods always forsook those in need.

He felt his ankle being grabbed as the unknown fingers pressed with enough strength to be felt through his boats.

Then, the panic kicked in. His heartbeat rose up and the only thing he could do was take a deep breath before he was pulled down.

Keith felt the waters circle him completely, his eyes blurring out thanks to the salt. Still, he forced himself to look at the mermaid, while his hand reached for his trustworthy knife.

It was a female with long silvery hair that reflected some of the underwater glowing lights. Her eyes were an ocean of blues with a sparkle of violet and her chocolate skin contrasted beautifully with the gleaming pink tattoos that covered her face and arms.

She didn’t attack him for a while, only maintaining her hold on Keith, keeping him stuck between her dragging force and the constant pull of the drum that had enough air inside to soar. One of her hands reached towards his neck, and only then did Keith realised how powerless he was, completely vulnerable to the mermaid’s whims. Yet, she did not attack him and her hand merely reached for the crystal around his neck.

“Lance…” Allura mumbled so weakly she doubted the human had heard her.

She’d recognise that crystal anywhere. It had belonged to her mother and then it was given to her brother. Allura had felt the presence of the small crystal when it touched the waters. Being connected to the big quintessence crystal that lingered in Altea had its perks.

The princess had never really understood the reach of the quintessence crystal’s power. From the day she was born, she had felt a connection to something much bigger. With the years she learned to hear and see their city by using the powers of the crystal, and after, she felt connected to the tides of the sea. It was like being part of the sea, instead of being a part of the sea.

Her magic only became stronger as her connection with the crystal grew, and soon Allura felt linked to the whole ocean by the smaller crystals that lingered in the sea floor. Like an entire network connection where the main part, where all the information was gathered, was the guardian crystal that protected their great city.

So, when the crystal came in contact with the waters, Allura immediately recognised it. She could feel its location and easily allowed her powers to flow through the crystals and see who the carrier of the object was. The answer did not surprise her, but she still felt the hatred boiling up inside. For Lance to hand out such an import object to a despicable human. It made her sick.

Allura looked to her right, finding her second in command notoriously worried. She smiled softly, easing the other’s concern, and gave out a simple order, _Lead the battle without me for a while. There is something, of the utmost importance that needs to be done!_ Her second in command nodded, bowing slightly and mumbling a soft, _Of course, princess._ Allura thanked her silently, ready to follow the energy from Lance’s crystal. Yet, before leaving she still offered, _I’m joining you as soon as I’m done!_

She looked the human in the eye, finding their color especially intriguing. Allura observed as it tried to speak out a ‘stop’ but his voice was muffled out by the ocean, while a stream of air bubbles left his mouth.

Keith gritted his teeth, the determination to stay alive traveled through his veins, even if he was running out of air. The mermaid had pulled him down, but she hadn’t dragged him too deeply. He still had a chance. He waited for a moment after his attempt to communicate failed, wondering if she would try anything or just wait for him to run out of breath. When she didn’t attack, he decided to make the first move.

His hand had never left the knife from the moment he had reach for it, and without a hint of hesitation, Keith aimed for the interdigital membrane of the hand that had him pinned in the waters.

But she was quicker, letting go of the human before he could hurt her. Keith took that as his queue, hoping he had bought a gap of time long enough to catch his breath.

Allura had no intentions of letting him do so. She gathered up her energy, all her tattoos lighting up in the process, and aimed at the human. A single glowing cable stretched out of the marking in her hand, like a whip, circling around the human with ease. He barely managed to take in any air, before he was being pulled down again.

Giving the land creature a last look, she used her powers to bind the human and unable him from trying to attack her again. Allura’s reached forward once more, with the intention of taking back what belonged to her mother.

Her eyes widen, mouth dropping slightly when the human fought back her magical binds, squirming away from her hand like he could read her intentions. His eyes were lit up in a fire Allura hadn’t seen in any creature for a while. Being it a mermaid or a human. She almost felt sorry for having to kill it. But, she couldn’t allow Lance’s whims and innocence put everyone in danger. Her brother had a pure heart that naively believed that even ruthless creatures like humans could be good.

In a way, she kind of envied how soft he could be. She had never been allowed that. The teachings that a moment of weakness from her could doom them all were permanently on her mind.

Keith swallowed his last breath, hoping he could make the air last for longer in his lungs and mouth. With every tug he struck on the bindings, they only seemed to tighten more around him, making squirming and breathing a tough job.

He felt powerless. Yet, he was far from resigning to his fate.

Even if his body was going limp. Even if his vision was as blurry as the mist.

He was not dying today, and, therefore, nothing in this world would be able to kill him.

“I’m sorry…” He might have imagined the words, “But you have to die.”

Keith tried to focus, grabbing to life as tightly as he held Lance when he cried, chanting to himself those three words like a prayer. His mind was on Lance when the jewel lit up all of a sudden, and Keith immediately felt his bindings loosen up.

Not that it mattered. _It mattered._

He had no strength left to swim to the surface. _He just wanted to soar._

He had no energy in his limp body. _He just wanted air._

He had no way left to keep his eyes open. He just wanted to see him again.

Keith's body followed the flow of the waters, even if his mind desperately fought to survive.

He had promised.

_But, aren’t promises made to be broken?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _You, the person that read my notes in the previous chapter:_ This wasn't that angsty?...  
>  _Me, sweating nervously:_ So yeah... chapter 9 got a lot bigger than I expected it to be, so I decided to cut it in half and therefore, _that part_ got dragged to chapter 10.  
>    
>  So basically this will have 14 chapters now... Although the last one is a small epilog and chapter 11 will probably be a small chapter too...  
>  Keith's vlog comes out; Immediately adds stuff from it to the fic! I love that boy so much. Someone give him a hug. Keith needs hugs!!!  
>    
>  Sorry for the delay but I guess keeping a schedule will only become more and more impossible from now on... But I'll try to keep the chapters coming weekly (key word here is _try_ )  
>    
>  Anyway. I hope you liked this... Thank you for reading and for the feedback. I appreciate the comments so much and I always read them even if I don't immediately reply.  
>    
>  Have a nice day <3
> 
> **Update: **I haven't abandoned this fic. I know I haven't updated in a while, but college has been killing me. Chapter 10 is almost finished and next Tuesday (7 Nov) my hellish college week ends and I will be able to work on this again. I'm really sorry for taking so long, but I'd rather focus on college now, and then on the fic then half-ass both :s****


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So quick recap of what happened in the last chapter:
> 
> Keith and Pidge were in the middle of the ocean and mermaids attacked them and they were pretty fucked. Then Keith actually thought jumping off the boat was a good idea.  
> Meanwhile, Lance finds Shiro (fi.na.lly.), figures out that he has altean magic :o and feels that Keith is in danger.  
> Keith was indeed in danger. Allura why?

He was soaring. Flying like the birds that glide in the vastness of the blue sky.

He was floating. High, above everything around him.

It was a strange feeling.

Lance felt light like the air bubbles that rushed to the surface, clear like the waters when the sun rays pierced them. Vast, as if, every time he closed his eyes he could feel the whole ocean in him.

It was a strange feeling, yet, somehow nicer than anything he had ever experienced before.

For the first time in years, the young mermaid felt whole, like he had finally found the piece he had spent his entire life looking for.

The rush of energy swimming through his body was incredible, bubbling like lightning bolts, making him feel invincible.

He wasn’t sure what had happened. Why was he able to use magic now. But he wasn’t about to complain about it. If the goddess was in a good enough mood to let him have his, he would gladly sit back quietly and take it.

Lance was running on instinct.

The worst thing about not having altean magic all his life was that he was never been taught how to use it. Every movement and every thought seemed like a completely new technique to summon his powers. It was incredible. The prince recalled a few basic forms he had learned by observing Allura training, but if he was going to stop his sister from hurting Keith, he would have to do much more than a demonstration of basic altean magic. Somehow he wished he could settle things without having to use his magic, but at the same time, he knew Allura wouldn't listen to him no matter what he told her.

He had already tried that approach and the results spoke for themselves.

He knew there would be consequences. But that was a risk he was willing to take to help Keith.

At the sudden thought of piercing violet eyes and night black hair, Lance felt his heart sink. A sudden wave of powerlessness washed over him, making it hard to stay focused on his main objective. He could feel his body growing tired almost instantly, numb limbs too heavy to move. His vision was a blur, blending the colors of the ocean together into nothingness.

Lance could feel the hopelessness invading him softly, yet a small sparkle remained lit in the void, thwarting even fate itself. The prince knew those emotions and fatigue weren't his. He was just fine, swimming in his own element, yet, it felt like he was running out of air.

He didn’t have much time. Keith didn’t have much time.

The mermaid wondered for a rushed moment if he should have a plan. Sure he had magic, and that was a really good start. But then again, the one attacking Keith was his sister, which happened to be the best warrior of his time. He had to be smart about it, use his powers, but also talk his sister out of her madness.

Lance knew that Allura wasn’t entirely wrong. She was looking out for them all, unwilling to take risks that could lead to the destruction of their society.

There was a lot of consistency and solid points behind her actions, but there was also hatred, fuelled by the scars of a past that would never heal.

It wasn’t a lie that Keith knew too much, but Lance wasn’t stupid. He had spoken to Keith openly because he trusted him enough to put his people's safety on the line. And maybe, yeah… Maybe, he had been a bit too impulsive on that, bargaining his knowledge for more information about humans, but that didn’t matter. He trusted Keith with all his heart and knew he would never use what he had learned against Lance or anyone else.

He knew that as well as he knew the waters where he had swam all his life.

Allura wasn’t wrong to want to kill a human that knew too much, but she was wrong to assume Keith was that human. He was not a threat to them, in fact, he had betrayed more his own by sneaking information about the battle plans to Lance, than the other way around.

The prince knew that when all those emotions had worn out, Allura would come to her senses and regret it. And that was why he had to stop her.

His blue eyes never dared to look back, constantly gazing towards the place where Keith was. He wanted to save him more than anything else and finally be able to see him again. Look at those gorgeous eyes and say one more time how much he loved him.

He had to make sure Keith would be ok, but he also couldn’t ignore what the human had told him about the crystal.

Lance took a deep breath settling in his mind, that, for now, Keith and his safety was his first priority. So he focused on the connection he felt to the ocean, allowing the emotions to flow to him and easily followed Keith’s trail of despair.

Blue eyes gazed towards the surface when a dim shadow covered the waters around him. Lance gulped, suddenly realising how close he was to the enemy.

For a slim moment, the prince let his guard down, regretting it almost instantly when a turmoil of emotions rushed at him. It was like listening to a silent scream filled with all the pain and rage of the ones fighting this battle.

The prince found himself panting, soon understanding he had much less control of his powers than he had hoped.

Ever since he had been born, the war between humanity and the mermaids was a matter that could not be ignored. Something that was always there, evident and clear as the waters, poking faintly in the back of everyone’s mind.

Lance had heard thousands of stories about it since he could remember.

Some heroically described the amazing deeds of his people. Others were more of a lesson to learn, thus the mistakes of the past wouldn't be made again.

He had heard all kinds descriptions. Learned about strategies and tactics and mastered how to fight and how to command those who fought beside him. He had been taught to think ahead of time, but also that being able to overcome a situation spontaneously was an indispensable skill in the art of war.

He had heard about it all. Coran had told him the most amazing descriptions of the battles he had been on, barely leaving out any details to the point where Lance could picture it all in his mind. The prince would close his eyes while Coran’s eccentric voice filled his ears, and let the description invade him like the waves breaching the shores.

He thought he had heard enough to be prepared.

Lance knew very well a battle wasn’t to be taken lightly. He knew he would see people die and kill without a second thought. And he knew he was ready and prepared to deal with it.

But he wasn’t.

He felt it in the way his heartbeat sprinted every time he heard the sound of metal pierce skin resonating through the waters. Acknowledging it as his eyes avoided to look at the faces of all the unknown soldiers that fell as he swam forward. He couldn’t even let himself see if it was one of his own or one of theirs.

It didn’t matter anyway.

Lives were being stolen from right in front of his eyes, and the only thing he would dare to do was look away and swim faster.

The thought had crossed him a couple of times. Lance didn’t know if he would ever reach Keith in time. He didn’t know if he would be able to save him. Yet, some of the people he had swum through, he knew, that had he just stayed a minute longer, he could’ve saved them.

But that minute. That minute could have been all Keith had left. And he just couldn’t take that risk.

Lance wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to forget the voices he had ignored. He didn’t know for how long his nights would be haunted by the people he decided to forsake. The faces he had decided to turn his back on. His own people. The ones he was supposed to protect.

He shook his own head as if the movement was enough to erase all those thoughts. Biting his own lips, Lance swallowed a scream that seemed to have formed in the back of his throat.

Tears left his eyes, silently joining the salty waters as if returning home. His head hurt.

Everything felt so real.

The screams. The cries. The prays. The silence.

He wasn’t sure when he stopped swimming, circling himself in his own arms in a sad attempt to shield all the hopelessness that filled him.

He could feel it all pierce him like blades. He could feel it all bind him like ropes.

Pulling him down.

Deeper than the depths.

Into the dark, cold and voiceless ends of the ocean.

He could feel his light dimming as the negativity corrupted the waters.

There was a voice.

Sweet like the chant of the birds flying in the sky.

There was a voice.

Calling him softly like his name was the only existent prayer in the world.

There was a voice.

A soft and beautiful sound, telling him to try again, reminding him to not give up.

Lance focussed on that single sound, clenching to it like one holds to life in the moments of death, and soon he was on fire.

Soaring again as the rush of energy traveled through his body, lighting him in the soft hues of blue that lived in his eyes and in the markings across his skin.

Keith. He wanted to save Keith.

Allura. He wanted to stop her from making a mistake.

The war. He wanted to end it all, so he wouldn’t have to hear the voices impregnated in the lifeless waters.

There was a sound.

A far away echo that chased everything away.

Lance opened his eyes then, caught in awe when he realised that everything and everyone had stopped. He looked around, mainly to make sure he wasn’t imagining it. The prince was left speechless for a moment longer, admiring how the battle in front of him had become static, until he finally realised what had happened.

 

* * *

  

A soft cyan light made her look back at the human. He had finally resigned to his fate, drifting with the small currents that surrounded them. His violet eyes had lost not just their color, but their fierce look too. She knew perfectly well that he wouldn’t last much longer.

Allura let her right-hand clench as her nails pierced her smooth skin. Even if she had done it so many times before, even when she knew perfectly well she had no other choice, it pained her to know she was taking away a life. The life of someone that hadn’t done anything wrong.

Humans were selfish creatures, constantly endangering themselves, others and the world just to get what they wanted. They were treacherous and had to be stopped. Yet all the motives she could give herself never erased the fact that she was slowly sinking to their level. An ironic contradiction.

But Allura would gladly throw away all that, willingly sinking to their level if that would keep Lance safe. It was a small price she wouldn’t mind paying.

Lance was her brother. The only family she had left. But, he was so much more than blood. Lance was someone that never doubted her and her abilities. The one that would give her a soft smile at the end of a bad and tiring day. The only one that wouldn’t put her on an unreachable pedestal, treating her like a normal mermaid and not some godly creature.

Lance was a safe point in a never-ending madness, and she was ready to sacrifice everything to keep it that way.

Her sky blue eyes lingered in the human a moment longer, eyeing the crystal that softly danced with the currents in front of her. It glowed a dim light that seemed to get brighter the more she looked at it.

Allura still couldn’t understand how could’ve Lance given up the only thing they had left from their mother so easily. A chill traveled down her spine, but she ignored it, reaching towards it once more to finally retrieve the necklace. The human didn’t even flinch, completely incapable of fighting or resisting.

Allura froze all of a sudden, unable to understand what had happened for a brief moment. But like always, the sound followed.

A terrifying shriek, strong enough to petrify her whole body. She noticed how the human managed to escape her hold, then. How her bindings had lost their strength and how the drum was filled with enough air to make him soar to the surface. How the currents were kind enough to take him away.

It took the princess awhile until she could move again.

Yet, her sky blue eyes still stared towards the human. Her body itched for her to finish what she had started, even if a part of her begged herself not to do it. But, something far more intriguing crossed her mind.

 _What just happened?_ She couldn’t help to think as she turned around. Her eyes widened as Allura realised how everything around her had stopped.

_That scream…_

There had only been one time in her entire life that Allura had heard something like that. A siren scream powerful enough to succumb not only humans but mermaids as well.

Allura, herself, had never been able to use such a powerful scream before.

It clicked suddenly, a soft realisation that crossed her mind, leaving goosebumps on her skin. Siren screams worked in human easily as long as the mermaid could use such ability, but for them to work on mermaids, another condition had to be met. Those siren screams didn’t just have to be shrieked with the intent to affect mermaids,  but also, they could only affect mermaids of lower hierarchic rank.

_Something is wrong..._

Allura immediately forgot the human in favor of understanding what was happening. For a siren scream to be able to petrify her, it meant, that whoever screamed had a stronger connection to the crystal than her. But, that was impossible. Allura was the ruler of Altea exactly because she was the one with the strongest connection to the crystal.

Her confused eyes caught a familiar sight for a moment. A blue tail, linked to tanned skin and soft blue eyes.

“Lance…” She observed as the prince seemed too lost in the waters, as if, he himself, was trying to decipher what had happened, “It can’t be…”

But it could. And all of a sudden everything made sense.

Allura felt almost pathetic for never releasing it before. She had learned about altean magic, the connection mermaids had to the crystal and how that would result in their hierarchical position. Suddenly, it made sense to her how Lance could so easily disobey her orders, even when she used a commanding tone on him. It was simple. It had always been right there in front of her eyes. She just never dared to see it.

She couldn’t help but take a look around. Lance was strong. It was evident just by the effects of that scream. In fact, Lance wasn’t just strong. He was much stronger than her, and his connection with the crystal was unlike anything Allura had ever seen.

Their eyes met for a moment, both of them stopping to stare at the other.

“Allura!” Her brother's shout swam towards her, “Where is Keith?”

And suddenly her surprised awe was gone, easily replaced with the bitter taste of hatred. _Of course…_

She didn’t answer, simplifying eying as the other mermaid dashed in her direction, yelling at her, “What happened to him? What did you do? Where is he?”

Allura voice went missing for a slim second. Her eyes widen slightly as she observed Lance’s tattoos lit up, glowing fiercely.

Lance had raw power, yet unlike her, he had no idea how to control it. She had been trained and had learned how to use her powers to their fullest. She had been taught when to strike or when to redirect her opponent's attack right back at them.

Her skills gave her an advantage her brother could never have.

But this wasn’t just a fight.

Allura had many arguments with her brother but this was no simple quarrel. The consequences of this fight could be permanent and dangerous.

“Lance… Think about what you’re doing…” she uttered as softly as she could, a simple reminder of the rules of their society, knowing Lance would understand.

His eyes gazed at her, “Where is he?” Lance spoke every single word slowly, emphasizing them more as he proceeded.

“I’m still the ruler of Altea and you owe me your respect. Attacking me could be considered treasury.”

Lance barely even thought about the meaning of the words before pushing further for answers. Allura ignored his questions once more, “A prison break and disobeying my orders already have you in trouble. What next? Do you plan on attacking me?” Lance only eyed her in fury, “All of this because of that quiznacking human? Do you even realise the level of your offenses? You could be banished! Or worst!” Her cyan eyes looked at the prince, but he didn’t even waver. She sighed, deciding not to push him further. She didn't want to fight him after all. “I have not harmed him.”

The look of relief in Lance’s eyes hurt like a thousand blades piercing her back. But she ignored it in favour of a much more important matter, “Now, return to Altea and I might overlook some of what happened today.”

Lance looked at her again, his eyes weren’t burning in fury anymore, but they weren’t less determined as he replied, “No.”

Allura mouth almost dropped open, but she managed to keep it shut, swallowing down the lump in her throat, “This isn’t a joke, Lance. I get it you are mad but what you’re doing is dangerous. You have no knowledge of battle and no experience in the field. You are being reckless and endangering yourself, me, our society,” she looked him straight in the eyes, “Even that human.”

The simple sentence had the effect she desired. Lance tried to retaliate, probably about to say he was here to save him not endanger him, but Allura spoke before he could, “What do you think it would have happened to him if you were seen saving his life?” She easily saw how Lance flinched, teeth biting his bottom lip. He had always been easy to read. “Just go back and,”

“No,” Lance repeated again, this time more firmly than before. Allura’s eyes shot back at him, and she knew surprise was written all over her face. “I know you are still mad at me too. For everything I did... but what’s done is done and I can’t change that now.”

He wasn’t lying. He knew perfectly the consequences of his actions, but Lance also knew there was no turning back. He knew he couldn’t change what had been done, but he also knew there was something he had to do.

“You have to go back to Altea.” The prince said, “The city is in danger and you’re the only one that could possibly stop it.”

Allura had to control her urge to groan, “I am not trusting the words of some human!”

“It’s happening… I can tell…” The blue tailed mermaid said silently. Allura froze for a moment.

She couldn’t feel anything.

Her cyan eyes gazed at her brother, silently wishing he was lying, but it didn’t seem like it. Lance had a much stronger connection to the crystal then she had. She knew that much. It wasn’t entirely uncalled for that he could feel something was wrong even if she couldn’t.

Yet, he could just be saying it for her to buy it. She wasn’t the only one that could read him like an open book. That game they played went both ways.

Allura sighed. Lance was risking a lot for it to be a joke. He was young and inexperient but he wasn't a liar. He knew perfectly well the risks he was taking and he wouldn't endanger everyone just to satisfy his own whims.  

And Allura trusted him. “Fine. I’ll call off our tropes and head back to Altea,” a smile grew in Lance’s face, “But. If you are lying abou-”

“I’m not Allura, you’ll see!”

“But you’re going back with me!”

Lance’s eyes widened, “But, what about-” He went quiet at the look his sister gave him.

The prince hesitated. He could easily check out on Keith if he allowed his magic to flow with the ocean as one. Yet, after what had just happened. After feeling so much hatred and fear invade him, Lance was reluctant to do so. He had no idea why, but he knew that had triggered him to freeze everyone and everything.

Allura was fine, she didn't seem to be affected by his magic at all, which made sense. Everyone seemed to be back to normal again, but Lance couldn't shake off the feeling that, next time, something bad would happen.

 _I’m scared too,_ _but I have to do this._ Lance could hear Keith's voice softly playing in his head, _I can’t leave the garrison if I want to see you again. And I want to see you again._

_I promise you I won’t die._

 

Lance closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He just had to trust Keith on this. He knew he would keep his promise and Lance would keep his and use Keith’s intel to save Altea.

“Ok. I’ll go.” Allura gave him a tender smile before they both swam towards the city.

“You go ahead. I have to call out the tropes.”

“Alright. Meet me there and don’t be late!” He pushed forward, ready to dash towards Altea at full speed.

“Lance!”

“Yeah?”

“Be careful on the way back!” His sister told him, smiling softly.

“You too.” Lance smiled back, watching as Allura turned around a swam towards the battlefront.

“Awesome!” He let out a cry of victory. It was about time something went right.

Standing up against Allura was definitely entering his top 10 terrifying things he had done. Definitely topped that one time he was chased down by a giant squid. Boy and was that scary!

He smiled, suddenly noticing she had already disappeared from his sight. With Allura’s help, he knew they could keep the crystal safe. She was calling the tropes too, so the battle would be over soon.

Lance kicked the waters, ready to take the way back to Altea when a small feeling of insecurity sank in the bottom of his stomach. Nothing he wasn’t unfamiliar with, but somehow, it felt strange. He turned around, suddenly realising something was wrong. Very wrong.

The blue tailed mermaid took in a deep breath as soon as he reached the surface. A stream of coughs followed down his throat, but Lance could barely register them as he looked around himself. His eyes widened and he just couldn’t believe what was happening.

_Oh no..._

 

* * *

  

Fire.

Everything was on fire.

His heartbeat throbbed against his chest frenetically. Purple eyes burned thanks to the salt of something he couldn’t quite figure out if it was seawater or tears.

Everything on his mind was scrambled. Bits and pieces he couldn’t quite puzzle together through the aching of his head.

He remembered Pidge trying to stop him from jumping off the ship into the ocean. He remembered swimming towards the lighthouse, his ankle being grabbed and the strong hold that pulled him deeply. He was able to recall the mermaid, like she was still standing right in front of him. Her gorgeous and mysterious eyes, tanned skin and long white hair that reflected the colors of the sea.

He remembered fighting back with all he had, almost escaping just to sink again. He remembered the sensation of wanting to breathe but not being able to. How his lungs screamed for air, while his mind fought to keep his mouth closed.

But he couldn’t remember anything else.

How had he escaped? How had he gotten there? What had happened? What was happening?

Two confused purple orbs gazed down, easily finding the shape of the crystal between the skin of his chest and shirt. He grabbed it, pulling the necklace and keeping a hold on the gem while his fingers clenched around it, hard enough to have the sharp edges of the crystal mark his skin.

 _Thank you_ , the words formed in his mind. Keith himself wasn’t sure who he was thanking. The crystal? Lance? Maybe the moonly goddess? Yet, that didn’t really seem to matter to Keith, especially when he finally saw the lighthouse in front of him.

He had no idea how he had gotten there. But, somehow, Keith had ended up on the small island where the lighthouse stood. A sparkle of determination lighted his violet orbs as he tried to stand up. His body screamed in agony, demanding rest, but every time he closed his eyes, he could hear the screaming voices of his comrades playing in his mind, and he knew, he had to move forward. He had to end this. Even if his body begged him to stop. He had to do it.

He took longer than he had first anticipated reaching the door that led inside the lighthouse, but at least the ache that invaded him every time he breathed has stopped. Purple eyes gazed around, easily detecting a couple of mermaids eying him from afar. It gave him chills, yet he knew they wouldn’t come close. Not when the fire burned so brightly right above him.

Keith tried to open the old door, soon realising it was locked.

_Of course!_

But that didn’t stop him, though. Judging from the looks of it, the door seemed to be crumbling more than anything else. He crashed into it, using his right arm and shoulder to deliver a blow close to the hinges. The result was what he expected, and he couldn’t hide the smug smile on his face as he moved forward.

Keith tried to run, desperate to reach his destination as fast as he could, but the pain was like knives piercing his skin and lungs, so he opted to walk. The main stairs appeared right in front of him, spreading adjacently to the walls of the circular room he had just entered. It had to be the main tower. When he looked up, he knew it was.

The black haired human had no time to lose, he started to climb up the stairs, soon noticing he had a long way to go before he even got close to reaching the top.

He, somehow, managed to find a good pace, where he wasn’t moving fast enough for his body to hurt but also not too slow. His confidence was shining so brightly, Keith didn’t even realise where he stepped.

His eyes widened when he felt the floor crumble beneath his feet, solid stairs breaking right under him and opening a path for the undeniable fall to his death. He acted on instinct, his left hand reaching for a small bit of cement that stuck out in the lateral walls of the tower. The blade he had in his right hand found its way to that same wall, the metallic part of blade scratching the solid walls with a shriek, and breaking his fall just enough to allow him to keep his hold on the wall.

His chest was clenching, heart beating fast enough for him to feel it on the back of his head. Keith took a couple of long breaths, trying to gather some strength before he pulled himself up. He didn’t dare to look down, but he knew he wouldn’t have survived the fall.

Somehow he managed to climb on top of a couple of stairs that hadn’t break. But, most of the path in front of him had fallen too, only small bits of bricks enveloped in cement sticking out of the walls. He hated to admit it, but as he looked around, attempting to find a way to get to the top, he noticed how the walls themselves seemed to be crumbling. The whole place seemed to be collapsing onto itself. 

 _Damn,_ he cursed under his breath,  _I should have looked at it more carefully before I started climbing._

A large window called his attention, Keith’s eyes widened when he noticed the window sill. Not too big, but thanks to the size of the window, it was large enough for him to stand. Probably.

He knew window sill where normally reinforced places, which meant it was probably one of the few spots where he could stand without having to worry about the floor crumbling from under his feet. But, there was a single problem, the window was on the other side of the circled shaped room.

Keith found himself groaning, head falling back in frustration. Thanks to it, he noticed a small dent in the wall. His left hand went to his chest easily finding the rope he had used to tie the drum to his back and he fastened it to his small blade instead, leaving the drum behind.

The black haired human aimed to the dent on the wall right above the window and was pretty pleased when his knife got stuck to it. He gave it a few experimental tugs, before jumping towards the other wall. Bracing himself, Keith let out a pained groan when he crashed into the wall of the other side. Thankfully his blade had thrust enough into the wall to hold his weight, and while Keith used the rope to climb high enough to reach the window sill, he found himself wondering how he was going to get down from the top.

The rope wasn't nearly enough for his to climb down with it and the more he looked at the stairs the more he noticed those weren't a good option either.

Still, that was a problem for future Keith. Current Keith was already having enough problems to deal with. He managed to jump into another flight of stairs, after collecting his blade and the rope. He was more careful after that, studying and avoiding to step on the stairs that seemed to be ready to break. But some bits were already broken, and when that happened he had to find another way to continue. After all, turning back wasn’t an option.

After collecting his blade and the rope, the human jump to another flight of stairs that was standing near the window. 

After his scare, Keith was more careful, studying and avoiding to step on the stairs that seemed to be about to break. But some bits were already broken, and when that happened he had to find another way to continue. Turning back wasn’t an option after all.

He was panting when he reached the top, and glad that the place where he was standing seemed to be a lot more steady than the stairs. Keith turned around, looking towards the pillar he had to destroy in order to reach this far. He took a couple of deep breaths as he watched part of the stairway he had just used, crumble and fall into nothingness.

The human forced himself to stand straight, even though both his legs felt like two noodles, yet Keith's purple eyes suddenly lit up when he saw the warm flame burning right in the middle of the circular room. He looked around, rapidly found what he was looking for.

Keith moved forward, ignoring how it felt so hard to breathe. He grabbed the drum he had just spotted and shook it, satisfied enough when he noticed it wasn’t empty. He opened it, the smell immediately confirming his suspicions. Fuel.

He headed towards the window and broke the glass. Curiosity got the best of him, and Keith ended up looking down to see how further from the floor he was. What he saw was something else.

“Oh my…” the words were lost in the echo that the long tower managed to offer.

He was sure his heart had stopped beating when he looked at the waters in front of him. The war, more precisely, this battle. He had never seen anything like this before. He had never heard of a battle of this dimension. It had him goosebumps just from staring at it.

The ships looked like dots splashed across the waters. He couldn’t see the mermaids very well, but most of them were given away by the brightness of their makings. He didn’t have much time. Maybe he was already too late.

He angled the drum of fuel just right to have it drip and observed as the liquid traveled down the outer part of the wall towards the floor. He continued the trail, bringing it inside the lighthouse, back to the burning flame, careful enough not to spill too much and set the whole place on fire.

A loud rumble followed by a tremor startled him.

_I knew I shouldn't have taken out that pillar…_

Too late now.

His eyes followed the flame, seeing it consume the fluid, following the trail with surprising speed. Keith followed it too, careful not to approach it too much, but he remained near enough to be able to stare down the window. The fire climbed down the wall, easily finding the trail of fuel he had left on his way to the lighthouse. It followed it towards the waters, and Keith let out a small sigh when he saw them light up.

That should be enough to slow the battle them. That should be enough to give his teammates the opening they needed.

Keith decided to take advantage of the place where he was standing to see if his plan had worked. The human was pleased to see mermaids swimming away from the wall of flames that rapidly spread across the waters. The currents and dragged some of the fuel around, making the reach of the wall of flames bigger than Keith had first anticipated. He could hear some of their distressed howls, but he was pretty sure he hadn’t hurt anyone. More than half of the mermaid forces dived back to the depths and Keith was so relieved he completely forgot the problem at hands until he felt part of the lighthouse’s main tower break under him.

He heard some of the distressed howls coming from the mermaids, and although he was pretty sure he hadn’t hurt anyone, he still felt a bit reluctant. Still, relief washed over him when he saw more than half of the mermaid forces dived back to the depths. He was so caught up in it all, he completely forgot the problem at hands until he felt part of the lighthouse’s main tower break under him.

“Shit!” He looked behind, breath stuck in his throat when he saw the floor crumble under him. He didn’t think twice, immediately climbing onto the window sill, spreading his legs so the trail of fire passed under them.

He didn’t have enough time to make his way back, the place would crumble on him before he could reach the floor. His violet eyes burned brighter thanks to the fire as he looked behind.

He had to jump.

Keith swallowed the lump in his throat. _If I jump from up here..._ He closed his eyes. _There’s no way I’ll survive the fall._

He looked at the blade and the rope, but he knew he didn’t have enough to get to the bottom.

Another tremor startled him, and soon, he felt the movement.

He was falling. Yet, the stoned floor stood firm under his feet. He looked outside, skewed scenery giving it away.

The tower was falling.

_That damned fucking pillar…_

Still, even as he felt the hopelessness of the situation, his grip on the walls didn’t weaken, on the contrary.

He wasn’t going to die.

Keith didn't even notice how it happened, but somehow he was holding to the necklace again. If having it around was enough to give him the strength to push forward, holding it was more than enough to make him survive death itself.

He wasn’t going to die. Yet he couldn’t stop the loops his stomach did when his hair was pulled back by the air, as the falling tower increased speed. Keith was collapsing right into the waters, watching them come closer and closer.

The human would be lying if he said he wasn’t afraid. He was. He probably hadn’t been this afraid in ages. But he kept himself from panicking. He had to jump. But too soon and he would be crushed by the tower, too late, and the tower would drag him down.

He had to wait for the right moment.

_Patience..._

_Yields..._

_Focus..._

He wasn’t going to die. He still had so much he wanted to do. He still had to find his brother. He still had so much he wanted to say to Lance. He wasn’t going to die.

He promised he wouldn’t.

Determination blinded him for a short while, giving Keith the strength to do anything. He took a deep breath, studying how close he was getting to the waters. He let his mind go completely blank, between deep breaths, while his right hand held the gem of the necklace.

He leaned back, trying to win some sort of momentum before he jumped towards the sea, mind completely blank, apart from the promise to survive that had him defying death.

His body crashed against the waters, and Keith couldn’t shake off the feeling of how familiar it felt. He couldn’t stop himself from remembering how months ago he had, in a similar way, attempted to put an end to his life. As messed up as it sounded, he didn’t regret it. It was his despair, hatred and suicidal thoughts that lead him to Lance.

It was his desire to end it all - the pain, the helplessness, the longing - that had given him what he had been looking for. A purpose, a reason to live, a person to love, protect and care. Someone worth living for. Someone that wouldn’t leave him. 

Keith allowed the waters surround him, the impact from crashing into the waters, strong enough to make the air leave his lungs. It felt like he had been punched in his ribs. And, as the pain spread across his body, the human forced himself to ignore the aching and swam upwards.

Kicking and giving the waters around him a couple of strokes he tried to move towards the surface, but instead of moving forward, he only seemed to be going down. The falling tower sinking to the depths was heavy enough to create a strong current that dragged him down, to the cold abyss.

Despair kicked in when he realised what was happening. He tried to swim, force his body to move, but the pressure of the waters that dragged him down was too strong. He couldn’t win.

Yet, he didn’t stop. He never stopped trying to reach the surface, even as it faded above him. He wasn’t sure if he was crying or if it was just the salt water burning his eyes. His mind screamed for air, yet all he could do was keep his mouth shut, knowing that, if he opened it and swallowed water, it would be worst. He knew. He had already experienced it once. And he didn't want to experience it again.

He hated how similar it all felt.

Jumping. The cold waters engulfing him. The realisation of surviving the fall. The fear that followed when he couldn’t breathe.

Yet, as much as he hated and feared it, he couldn’t stop thinking that, if it was similar enough, Lance would show up to save him. Again.

His eyes seemed to blur when he reached forward as he trying to grab a hand that wasn’t there to save him.

Keith couldn’t keep the fear inside anymore. He didn’t want to die. He was afraid to die. But every time he begged the sea to let him surface, the cold waters only seemed to drag him deeper. As if he belonged in the darkest depths of the abyss.

Keith just wanted to see him. He desperately wanted to be able to hold him again, kiss him until they both ran out of breath. He would give anything just to be able to see that smile again, those beautiful blue eyes glancing back at him. He still had so many stories he wanted to share, adventures he wanted to hear about.

He bit his bottom lip, his last hope to keep himself from opening his mouth to breathe. Or maybe he was just trying not to cry.

The human tried to surface once again, but the currents weren’t the only thing stopping him. His body was going limb as numbness swallowed him whole. Maybe, he should just rest. Close his eyes. Let go. Stop fighting. Let the waters take him.

At least he would be resting in the place everyone he had ever loved was.

His parents. Shiro. Lance.

The human couldn’t stop his mind from drifting. He couldn’t stop himself from imagining a time when the war was no more and he could just be with Lance without having to worry about the consequences. But obviously, that couldn’t happen.

 _Lance…_ He looked at the surface, but maybe he should've been looking at the bottom, _I’m sorry…_ Keith could feel his limps going numb.

His mind forced him to remember his own words, _I promise you I won’t die._ He had vowed. _Promise we’ll see each other again._ He had assured him. But,

 _Lance..._ Keith couldn’t even keep his eyes open anymore _, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have promised something I couldn’t keep._

 

* * *

  

Lance sucked in a breath while he tried to remain as calm as he could.

However, it wasn’t helping and the prince was freaking out to the point where he was starting to regret ever making fun of his friend.

In front of him, Lance observed through widened blue eyes, how the ocean turned into flames. Fear crawled under his skin, petrifying him in place.

The warmth of the flames brushed against his face while the brightness blinded him. It seemed to circle him, feeding on his fear more than on the fuel.

The blue tailed mermaid only had one thought on his mind. Escaping. He had to swim away from that burning inferno as fast as he could. Fire was dangerous. Fire was death.

As ironical as it sounded, it was the distressed howls of his people that helped him back to his senses.

Lance looked around, easily reading the panic that melted across the waters. Some mermaids dived back to the depths. He couldn’t really blame them. Others had stopped fighting and froze still as they stared at the flames. He couldn’t blame them either.

He could only blame himself for not doing anything. Allura would have done something. But Allura wasn’t there anymore. 

His mind drifted again, wondering for a moment if his sister was alright and if she had managed to cease the battle. Even if she hadn't it should be over now.

The prince suddenly remembered how he had been able to freeze the bars of his cell earlier, and with a small smile on his lips, he made his hands reach forward, summoning the same sort of essence he had before.

_Fear._

The sensation called him out. Lance was afraid, but that, that feeling was not his. He looked around, pointlessly trying to ignore the fire. His blue eyes lingered for a moment longer in the lighthouse, and he couldn’t help himself from slightly parting his lips when he realised the tower seemed to be falling.

_Determination._

He felt it run through his bloodstream like a drug, and, when Lance closed his eyes he could almost feel the soft air brushing against his hair. He was jumping, falling into the waters moments after.

_Helplessness._

Was the feeling that followed, and Lance knew Keith was in danger.

He could taste it under his tongue. Feel it in the way is heartbeat speed up. Sense it from the way his eyes blurred. 

His promise to return to Altea was immediately forgotten.

Keith was in danger. He had to help him. Lance wanted to reach to him, but a wall of fire circled him. Worst. The fire seemed to be everywhere near the lighthouse, burning more intensely and only making Lance’s throat grow dry.

It was part of mermaid’s nature to stay away from the fire. Just the thought of swimming in the waters under it gave him shivers. Yet, there was a thought in his mind that gave much more shivers than a thousand burning flames.

Lance sucked in a breath while he tried to remain as calm as he could, and then, dived.

The prince knew Keith wasn’t going to last much longer, but he couldn’t surface exactly where he was. Not when the flames burned too brightly above him. He had to swim him closer to the shore.

Lance’s mind went completely blank for a moment, and even though he was beginning to learn how to control most of his powers, the mermaid couldn’t stop the emotions from flooding into him anymore.

Death peered at him softly, gradually dragging him to his demise. He could feel it call out to him. Part of him just wanted the pain to end, but another part wanted to fight until the end. Until the last breath.

Lance had never swum so fast in his life before, the fear, panic, and despair sank in him too easily. He didn’t care about the fire. He wasn’t even afraid of it anymore. The thought of never being able to see those gorgeous eyes again scared him much more than some puny flames.

It wasn’t hard to find him. Keith.

The prince observed his limp body move with the currents, while his right hand stubbornly tried to reach the surface. Lance swam faster, reaching to Keith in a swift motion.

His left arm circled behind his back, while his right hand went to block his nose. Lance’s lips were on Keith’s soon after.

It felt like years since he had held and kissed the human, even tho a day had barely passed. The prince forced the air into Keith’s mouth while swimming them away as fast as he could. The currents that the falling building had created were like a soft summer breeze to him, barely doing anything but brushing some of his locks of hair away.

Yet, Lance found himself growing weak. Tiredness washed over him, still, he didn’t dare to stop. He couldn’t stop for something so trivial when Keith’s life laid on his hands.

When the mermaid finally managed to surface, the flames were far away, and only the soft lighting from them peered into Lance’s eyes.

“Keith! Keith!” His voice was desperate, and now Lance knew he had been crying, “Keith! Are you ok? Please, just answer me!” Lance could feel the human’s heartbeat pressed against his own chest, but that did few to relieve his fears.

He did his best to help Keith, pressing against his back or chest, attempting to make him spill out the water he might have swallowed. But the human wasn't reacting.

 _No…_ Blue eyes were painted with fear, _Please… Just talk to me. I was so close. I can't lose you._

A stream of coughs jolted him straight, as two limb arms finally started to grab onto him. Lance smiled, relieved to see the human react but still fearing the worst. He gently struck Keith’s back a few times, to help him cough out the rest of the water he had swallowed.

“I’m fine.” The human offered through his hoarse throat. He tried to smile back at the mermaid, but it came out as a weak and scared grimace.

Keith looked up, their eyes meeting for a silent instant, and there was nothing more in the world but them. There was no war. No burning flames. No screaming voices. It was just Keith’s arms around Lance's neck. Their weak breaths brushing against the other's face.

Lance leaned forward, and Keith rested his forehead against his, almost instantly. A laughed cracked around them, followed by a slightly shier one.

“I thought I was going to die,” Keith admitted, still a bit confused. But he felt safe, and that was all that mattered.

“I thought you were going to die!” Lance offered, voice high and almost reprimanding, “Like 3 times?” He forced Keith’s eyes to look at his blue ones, “How much more times until you’re satisfied?”

The human laughed, a trail of coughs falling out of his mouth soon after. Lance only held him closer, making sure he was high enough above the waters not to swallow any more water.

“I don’t mind it if you show up to save me,” Keith said teasingly. He stared at the mermaid through greedy eyes. Almost begging.

Their lips locked instantly. Keith’s pale hand was on Lance’s hair tucking it from time to time, demanding for the other to part his lips. The mermaid did, enjoying Keith’s eagerness, as the human’s tongue entered his mouth.

Their kiss was messy but Keith couldn’t care less. Not when he thought he would never kiss those lips again, or touch that soft hair, look at those gorgeous eyes, hear that beautiful laugh. He kissed Lance like it was the last time because that was what it felt like as the helplessness of death crawled under his skin.

“Keith!” Lance broke them apart, but the human’s lips didn’t stand still, leaving a trail of kisses down on the mermaid’s neck. The prince tried to speak, but he could barely utter a word under the moans that kept leaving his mouth. “Keith! Stop! I- I need, It’s important!"

The human stopped, but the way his violet eyes looked at him, told Lance he didn’t have much time before that mouth was on him again. Not that he minded.

“Things went south when I tried to talk to Allura. I-” Lance couldn’t stop himself from remembering how helpless Keith looked as she dragged him down to his death, “I don’t want anything to happen to you because of me!”

“Lance?” His voice came out quietly and hoarse.

“It was my fault for talking to you in the first place, and even though Allura stopped, I think you’re still in danger.” He looked away. “I could never live with myself if she did anything to you.”

By the way Lance’s voice sounded, Keith knew he was serious. He knew he was truly afraid of something occurring, “It’s ok. Nothing happened. I’m here!” Keith fought the urge to kiss him again.

The mermaid smiled, “Yeah. I know. But until my sister calms down and listens to me. Until she understands you're not a threat to us, it would be better if we didn’t meet.” Lance hated the way the violet eyes looked at him, “It’s only for a while, I promise. But you have to stay away from the shores. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to you!”

Keith nodded, mumbling a soft ok that brushed against Lance’s lips. Keith’s hand went to caress the mermaid’s hair, but he stopped.

His eyes widened in surprise, words stuck in his throat. “Your hair?” He wasn’t sure how he hadn’t noticed it yet. He blamed it on the darkness of the night and on the gorgeous blue eyes he couldn’t avert his gaze from. “What happened? It’s- It’s white?”

“Oh yeah! Figured!” Lance ran his hand through his hair, eyes never leaving Keith’s. He bit his bottom lip softly, “Do you like it?”

“It suits you,” Keith mumbled before kissing him again. Lance didn’t kiss back, laughing softly as Keith softly brushed his lips in the prince's. “What happened?” The human asked after a while. Lance was holding him tightly the same way he normally did when Keith needed a resting place in the middle of the waters.

Before Lance could answer, Keith shook his head as if he had finally remembered something much more important than any other question he wanted to ask, “What are you doing here?” His lips moved softly, hiding a mix of emotions the black haired teenager tried to keep bottled up. “Shouldn't you be in the castle? Inside that Altean shield thing?”

“It's actually a very long story…”

“You haven't been out there fighting have you?” Purple eyes widened in fear, and Lance could have sworn he had felt Keith's heart stop, “You could have gotten hurt!”

Lance smiled, “I’m fine. Besides, I don't want to hear _that_ from you, Mr. Grumpy Suicidal Ass.”

Keith didn't say a thing. He was waiting for answers and Lance knew it. He normally did that every time he asked the prince something and didn’t get an immediate response. He had missed Keith’s pouting face.

“Long story short. _Really short._ Allura got really mad and sent me to prison,”

“What?!” Keith's voice was loud against his ears, “You said she wouldn't put her own brother in jail.”

“Yeah… I might have underestimated my sister a bit...” The prince trailed off, looking away, “She did it to keep me away from the battle because she knew I could easily leave my room.”

Keith was about to speak again, and by the looks on his face it was probably to reprimandLance, but the mermaid was faster, “She was coming after you. Because I've told you too much and she thinks you're going to use it against us.”

Keith's mouth formed a small o in realisation. Lance was out there because of him.

“Ok…” A soft breeze pushed some of the black hair away. The human was still a bit confused, but he decided not to push it much further. He now had finally understood why Lance wanted them to stay away for a while. But there was still something he didn't quite understand, “But, you didn't answer my question.”

Lance eyed him confused, raising an eyebrow. Keith smiled.

“What happened to you. Your hair? Can you use altean magic now? How?”

“To tell you the truth… I don't know…” Lance looked away, cheeks burning for a moment, “I somehow felt you were in danger, and before I knew it I had frozen the bars of-”

Keith eyed the mermaid suspiciously when he didn’t move, frozen still, “Lance?”

“Oh my goddess! How could I have forgotten?” Blue eyes met the violet ones, excitedly looking at the other boy, who seemed almost taken aback by Lance's sudden enthusiasm. “I found him!”

Keith frowned, eyeing Lance silently, “What are you talking about?”

Lance's smile was contagious. The prince had to take a deep breath to calm himself, before locking eyes with Keith, speaking softly, “I found your brother, Shiro. He’s fine.”

Keith stopped. His eyes wide and his mouth agape. He tried to mumble something but only tears made their way out of him.

Lance smiled softly, aware that Keith had probably been slowly coming to accept that he would've never seen his brother again. “Hey, man. It's ok. I promise that as soon as things calm down, I'll get him out.”

“What happened? Where was he? How is he? I- I… Shiro.”

Lance hugged him tightly. “My trip to prison was worth, right? Don't worry. He didn't seem hurt or anything. He was glad to know you hadn't done anything stupid while he was gone.”

Keith laughed, “Yeah… about that…”

Lance laughed too, knowing that, indeed, both of them had done quite a number of stupid things in the last months.

The human hesitated for a moment, but he would regret it if he didn’t ask, “Was… Was anyone else with him?” Blue eyes peered at him confused, and Keith decided to elaborate. “Shiro wasn’t alone in that mission. Matt was with him… I guess I was just wondering if…” he trailed off, suddenly uncertain how to proceed.

“Oh quiznack! I got so excited when I recognised Shiro, but I didn’t even pay much attention to anything else.” Keith let out a small acknowledgment noise. Lance smiled, “I don’t want to lie to you… But I think I remember seeing another guy with him on his cell… Well if he survived my sister wouldn’t have killed him or anything. So I’d say that guy is probably ok too? I don’t know…”

Keith couldn’t help but laugh softly against Lance’s neck. He had missed his rambling way more than he had first anticipated. “I still can't believe what you said. It feels like a dream. I've been looking for Shiro for so long. I-” his voice cracked, and Lance hugged him tighter, “Thank you.”

“Oh, it was nothing.”

Lance's shit-eating grin spread across his face, but Keith couldn't even be mad at him. He thanked him again, this time by brushing his lips into Lance’s. The mermaid kissed back, pulling Keith closer, instinctively. When they broke apart, Keith couldn't open his eyes for few moments. 

But when he did, The human found Lance staring at him tenderly, "I'm sorry, are you-"

Keith pulled him back, instantly locking lips with his prince. He didn't want to hear Lance apologise. Whatever motive the mermaid thought he had to be sorry for, he just plain wrong.

They were both panting soon after, and this time Lance remained quiet, only daring to gaze at the human's violet eyes. 

“I should go.” Keith said, “I’ll probably have a lot of explaining to do to my superiors.”

Lance nodded, but he kept his arms firmly around Keith's waist. Maybe he even held him tighter.

“I’ll swim you to shore.”

Keith refused the offer, “Just dive back underwater. I’m fine.”

“No way. You almost drowned!” Lance protested, “You're too tired to swim back. You're just going to get yourself killed.”

Lance definitely had a point. And a good one. Keith still felt like shit, so accepting the help was probably his best option.

“Ok…” He simply said. Both boys remained quiet as Lance swam them to shore, careful enough to keep Keith from swallowing any water. The full moon was bright in the cloudy sky, lighting the waters in a soft silvery glow that was almost calming. They stayed in silence as they swam together, both deep into their own thoughts.

Something was itching on the back of Keith’s mind. Something he could only describe as a bad feeling. He figured not knowing when he would see Lance again was playing the trick. Even if he knew that Lance’s would never leave him, sometimes, it was impossible to shake off that little annoying voice in the back of his mind. Constantly reminding him, that everybody always left.

His parents.

Shiro.

One day, it would be Lance.

“Hey? You ok?” The soft voice brushed against his face. Keith’s eyes shot up, immediately finding Lance looking at him with concern, “You’re not dying on me now, are you?”

Keith smiled, a huffed laugh existing his mouth, “Sorry. I just had something on my mind.”

“Well, like I said before,” Lance looked away, and Keith followed his gaze, “We’re here.”

The human let out a small ‘oh'. He would never get used to how fast mermaids could swim.

He nodded, mumbling out a soft thank you that sent chills down Lance’s spine. He easily left the waters, studying his surroundings in hope of recognising where he was. He wasn’t in their usual spot, that he knew for sure. But, the black night, only litby the glowing moon and the far away flames, made it a bit too hard.

Especially when Keith had other stuff to worry about.

He stopped when the waters only reached to his knees, whispering without even daring to turn around, “When will I see you again?” Keith was actually surprised that his voice had sounded so natural. It almost seemed to perfectly hide the turmoil of emotions bubbling beneath his skin.

“Soon?”

That wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear.

“Maybe in a week? Or two?” Lance trailed off, and Keith could picture in his mind how his eyes looked away, “I don’t know… It really depends on how things go with Allura.” Keith turned around then, finally realising the mermaid was a lot closer than he had first anticipated, “It didn’t go very well last time I tried. But I’m not letting that stop me! She will see you were not lying and she will believe me. I hope...”

He couldn’t help but smile. Lance was amazing. The way he kept fighting for something he believed in was reassuring. His ability to make the most out of the situations, and to adapt so easily. Things just came to him naturally most of the times.

“Be careful, ok?” He finally turned around, mumbling out those words as a way to replace the other three he couldn’t quite bring himself to say. Even if he had done it before. Every time he tried to say it, his heart just seemed to grow in weight, sinking into his stomach while his throat grew dry.

Lance hummed, unaware of his inner struggles, “I should go…” He looked back at the ocean. The wall of flames was still burning behind him, yet it was now visible that soon, the flames would die out. “I’ll see you soon…” Lance tried again, but he made no effort to leave.

Two gorgeous blue eyes looked back at Keith, pulling him in like a magnet. He couldn’t say no to that look.

Step by step, he felt the cold waters slowly reaching above his knees. The waves crashed softly against his legs, splashing his already wet uniform, before dying in the sand. Before he could even think about it, Keith was sinking to his knees, the waters now reaching his chest as he leaned and let his forehead rest against Lance’s.

Even if they weren’t in a life risk situation anymore, he was still going to have to wait for way too long before he could see that dork again. As much as he wanted to, Keith couldn’t just leave without a last goodbye.

“I’m gonna miss you…” Lance felt the voice brush against his face, and he softly opened his eyes.

“I’m going to miss you too. Getting out. Watching the sunsets. Hearing stories about the stars. Learning more about humans.” He pressed closer as if to emphasise his point, “Learning more about you. There’s still so much I want to know.”

Keith chuckled, “What makes you think I will tell you anything?” He had a playful smirk on his lips. Lance found it adorable.

“Well, If you don’t want to talk to me, I won't force you. But I sure have my ways to make people come around.” He winked, and Keith knew he would miss that. And the smile that followed. He would miss that too.

“Oh… yeah?” he returned, a bit too defiant. Lance hummed as if to highlight his previous point. Keith hid his smile by biting his bottom lip. He could feel Lance softly leaning into his space, so he pressed closer. The mermaid’s right hand cupped his cheek, forcing their eyes to meet even if just for a slim second. Lance tilted his own head, and Keith closed his violet eyes, waiting for the soft lips to meet his.

“I love you…” The words were soft, barely above a whisper. But Keith heard them. He opened his own eyes, wanting to see Lance’s face as he replied to him. They were so close, Lance intense gaze stuck in his eyes. Keith smiled unable to distance himself or ignore the bubbling sensation on his chest.

_I love you too…_

He opened his mouth to reply, yet the words never came out of his mouth. Pidge was screaming his name. He felt hands grabbing him down. “Keith? Keith? Are you ok? That thing didn’t- KEITH!”

He now regretted opening his eyes to look at Lance. Because he had seen every tiny bit of fear, despair and dread twisting in his features when he realised what was happening.

Pidge somehow had Keith pinned against the sand. The black haired teenager hadn’t even realised when he had been dragged out of the waters. Everything was happening so fast.

_Lance…_

He tried to find out what had happened to the mermaid. Sure, Lance was outnumbered, but he had magic now. He should be ok.

Yet he wasn’t.

He seemed to be frozen in place. There was defiance in his eyes, yet his body language said otherwise. He looked as defenseless as a wounded animal surrounded by wolves.

“Keith!” Pidge was sitting on his chest, pinning his arms close to his aching head. “Keith! Listen to me! It’s alright!”

He was screaming, mumbling. Throat dry, Eyes wet. “Lance! No! Let go of me! Don’t hurt him!”

“Keith! Snap out of it! It’s all in your mind!”

“Get off me!” He tried to push Pidge away, but his small roommate barely even flinched. “Lance! Just- Leave him alone! He didn’t do anything!”

“Don’t let his mind tricks control you! You can still snap out of it! We got here in time before it could kiss you!”

Purple eyes widened. That’s right. A kiss from a mermaid, for them, was the way they enslaved humans into mindless puppets.

The air was thick enough for him to feel all the emotions that lingered around them.

_Fear. Hatred. Revenge._

He knew exactly what his comrades were planning to do. He had thought the exact same months ago.

There was no reasoning with madness.

“Keith! Please! Just say something!” Pidge’s voice was starting to crack as if the little cadet truly believed to have lost her friend to the whims of the enemy.

“I’m ok…” He mumbled out, body going limp against the strong hold. “Sorry… I didn’t hurt, did I?”

“No…” The voice was much softer than Keith had expected it. It made him feel numb. “Damn it, Kogane. It thought you were gone for good for a moment.”

He couldn’t bring himself to answer. His hand landed on the brown hair, ruffling it. He got up, signaling Pidge to stay back. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again he moved onwards, determination sparkling in their purple.

He found the mermaid in a defensive stance, hissing and showing his fangs, threatening. He sucked in a breath, and let his own mind go blank.

Lance’s eyes caught the exact moment Keith had moved. A part of him knew those humans were only trying to protect Keith. A part of him knew those humans weren’t there to hurt Keith, yet, when he saw him pinned to the sand, Lance really had to fight against his instincts not to attack.

It was not like he wanted to fight. Yet, the look he saw coming from the other humans, told him he didn’t have much of a choice. Lance stretched out his hand, ready to use his magic and buy himself enough time to escape. But instead of freezing the humans to the floor he was the one frozen.

_It’s gone…_

His mind was racing. Heart beating fast enough to feel it in the back of his mind. Fear. Fear was the only thing he felt when he saw the electric gun Keith had mentioned pointed at him.

He felt powerless.

All the terrible stories about humans. All the terrible stories about the things humans did were on his mind. And the more he wanted to shake them off, the more he couldn’t. They just felt too real.

“Stop that!” Keith’s voice was piercing cold. Lance’s blue eyes moved to him, and he managed to hear the little human further behind, mumble out a ‘Keith? What are you doing?’

 _Keith…_ Lance felt relief just from having him there. He knew the other would never let anything bad happen to him.

“Hey, Kogane?” One of the guys spat, “Are you even listening to what you’re saying? Or is that thing still messing with your head?”

Violet eyes pierced the blond guy, “If there’s anyone here with a motive to kill that thing. It’s me!” The guy seemed to take a step back, yet the humans weren’t the only ones caught by surprise.

Lance fought the urge to shake his head. No. Keith would never betray him. He probably had something up his sleeve. That's right it was only a distraction.

“That thing got to my mind, to the point where I couldn’t even reason anymore.” Keith was clenching his hands, teeth smashed against each other in pure fury, “I felt it take control. Telling me to do its bidding.”

Lance swallowed hard. Unable to ignore the part of him that he normally tried to neglect.

Keith.

Keith was on his side.

But his insecurities told him otherwise.

Keith loved him.

Yet, there was self-doubt eating him from within.

Keith would never betray him.

However, why did Lance felt like he had been used?

The mermaid’s vision blurred, bright blue eyes turning glassy. Keith had always been looking for Shiro, now that he knew where he was, he didn’t need Lance anymore. Right?

One of the humans handed Keith an electric gun, huffing something about killing Lance.

He felt like he was in a daze, hearing the silence of the sounds around him. Everything was hollowed and unreal. He knew he was dreaming.

He saw Keith’s pale hands picking up the gun. He saw how his face looked blank, nothing like the boy he had met countless time on the shores. Nothing like the boy that had told him tons of different stories. Nothing like the boy he had learned to love.

He shattered. Emptiness consuming, filling in between his broken pieces. He wasn’t dreaming. He knew it was real.

 _Humans say nothing more than lies._ Allura’s words were on his mind.  _Humans are dangerous, cunning, and not trustworthy. They care for nothing more than themselves._

She was right. Allura had been right all along.

Lance had told him everything. Answered every single question he had asked with a smile on his face and not a hint of suspicion in his voice. It was all his fault. Allura was right and he had putten everyone in danger.

His heart ached for him to stop thinking, but his mind wanted to torment him with all his mistakes.

He had endangered everyone. He was selfish, pursuing his own desires. And now, he had to face the consequences.

“What are you waiting for?” The blond guy standing next to Keith uttered when he didn’t fire immediately. Lance had a small sparkle of hope in his eyes.

“I was thinking…” Keith said to his team, “We never caught a mermaid, did we?”

Lance felt a jolt of fear travel across his back. He panicked, for the first time trying to swim away. The waters were low, but, maybe he had a slight chance.

Keith was faster. Firing the gun towards Lance’s direction. There was a howl of pain. Nothing had ever hurt like that before.

Everything went black like the lights had been turned out. It was too late.

Lance’s mind was a mess in the following moments. There was a hand. Something bragging him down. He could feel himself being ripped apart from the ocean. It hurt.

 

There was a knife. Maybe it was cutting right through his scales, or maybe it wasn’t. He noticed a couple more faces around him. The inevitable sensation of something in his mouth. He couldn’t speak or sing. He could barely even breathe.

Some sort of restrains were forced into his body. His hands were behind his back. He couldn’t move his tail. He could barely even feel his tail.

His mind was screaming. Everything hurt. It hurt so much.

But it wasn’t just because of the restrains. It wasn’t just aftermath of the gun.

The pain came from somewhere else. Something else. Someone else.

Someone with a soft smile. A gentle voice. Hair as dark as the night. Porcelain skin. Gorgeous purple eyes.

It wasn’t fair.

He justed wanted to go back home, hug his best friend, apologize to sister for everything stupid he had done in his life and make sure everyone was ok.

Yet he knew he was being dragged away from the place where he belong.

His head was heavy and Lance simply allowed the numbness to overtake his body. He welcomed it. A simple escape from the harsh reality he still couldn't quite believe.

It wasn’t fair. Nothing was fair...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, **I'm so sorry for taking so long to update. **  
> ****   
>  The thing is, college really made my life suck during a hellish week where I had a couple of tests are projects all due around the same time. Which resulted in me, having to take my time to study and work on them in advance and not completely fuck up.  
>  I even considered cut the chapter **again** and publish a bit of it so the waiting time wouldn't be so long, since I had already 5k written when that week happened. Problem was... What I had written was from the middle and end of this chapter, and I was completely missing out the first part.  
>  I really wanted to get this chapter done a lot sooner but, after not writing for a while it was really hard to pick up the pace and start to write again. *sighs*  
>  But yeah... Chapter is done, and even though the last cliffhanger was bad... I'm like 90% this one isn't better.  
>  Also, chapter 11 is a small interlude where I will explain some stuff so I'm pretty sure it won't take me almost two months to get it out.  
>    
>  On a much better topic, **my good friend Bibs,** that helps me out with the story a lot, and got a digital drawing tablet recently and **decided to draw some art for chapter 8.** I already uploaded it, in the fic so check that out, or in her tumblr, [click here](http://bibocas-valkiria.tumblr.com/post/167380401604/i-finally-made-it-this-took-me-like-a-month-or)  
>    
>  **Thank you so much for reading. College won't probably strike again until the exams so I'll try to have the fic finished by then (aka. January). Thank you all for the messages. I read them all, but I was on a no Ao3 distractions policy for most of the month so I ended up not replying to most of them. Thank you for your patience and lovely comments and support. It really helps and keeps me motivated to write this, and it's always nice to know others enjoy your work.  
>  Thank you Thank you  <3 ******


	11. Interlude

It was a day like any other.

The gorgeous city spread across the ocean’s floor, turning and shifting with every valley, every depression of the ocean’s floor. It was an outstanding place, built from the safety of the cliffs to the plain ocean floor, deep down and away from the human eye.

Even with the void of the depths surrounding, the city was particularly bright. The streets and the roads that connected the most important buildings advanced like a giant web, meeting in small plazas or beautiful suspended gardens that flourished in various vibrant colors. The soft glow of the quintessence crystals followed these paths in straight gleaming lines that brightened the place, traveling through the stoned carved floors of the city graciously.

Like in most cities, some of the buildings were old while others had been constructed quite recently, and even though, the old ornamented columns and arches were expected to clash with the most futurist designs, the mermaids, somehow, had managed to make the too different architectonic styles fit in an unsettling harmony that translated perfectly the progressive evolution of their ancient civilization throughout the last centuries.

The lonely rays of the sun that reached the depths were few, still, the place was never gloomy thanks to the warmhearted brightness of the crystal that lived on top of the royal castle, securely protected in the safety of a tower far longer than the others. The beautiful glow of the crystal was easily spotted from most parts of the city, gleaming a soft warmth that was known by the inhabitants of Altea as safety. It was like a constant sun. The only ray of hope in the dark depths, that would never leave them. A memento of their goddess and a promise that as long as its glow was cast down the roads and buildings of their great city, no darkness would corrupt them.

In many plazas, but also carved into buildings, were statues of the goddess. Some were small and plain, while others were gracious enough to make one stop and stare at them. One of the most famous ones happened to be in one of the many interior cloisters of the royal palace. The statue had a small quintessence crystal within itself, allowing the many and dazzling marking of the goddess’s statue to shine with her. Her tail was painted in soft hues of purple, and her hair seemed to flow with the currents that passed through the small garden. Around the statue, on the paved and hand painted floor, various purple corals spread, perking the place up.

Throughout the years, Alteans had learned how to handle the beautiful crystals and frequently used them to brighten their once gloomy buildings, carving the stones and hand painting patterns to garnish them. So, because most of the crystals were transparent or blueish, their light cast a permanent hue on the roads of the city that made it seem luminescent.

The plants and the shoals of fish were just as much of a normal part of the city as any building, statue or monument. A natural part of Altea which signaled that the city was alive and well. Thousands of different corals and algae spread across roads, rising from the small gaps between rocks or simply finding their residence on the walls of the houses.

Among the natural wonders of the city was what the Alteans liked to call the forest. It was an older part of Altea, which the ancients defended to be as old as the goddess herself. It had been built on the inside of the cliffs, blessed with buildings, mostly circular, that advanced from the bottom to the top of the rocky cavern. There were thousands of different pillars, all with delightful carvings. Most of the buildings were ruined or falling apart, but the ruins mixed with the colorful sea plants and the gleam of the crystals made the old and dismal place look just more beautiful.

The ancients used to say that that was once the great city of Altea, destroyed mainly because of some calamity, lost in the void of time. It was believed that, instead of rebuilding it, the mermaid’s ancestors decided to leave it be and construct a new city mostly around it, using other parts of the cliffs, and later spreading it across the ocean’s floor too.

Now, the place was considered almost sacred. A lonely and vast amount of crossroads that belonged mainly to the plants and the fish.

Yet, the reason why it was called forest laid on the many amounts of kelp that had grown within the place, filling it with vegetation and making it look like what humans called, _forest_.

Its beauty was undeniable, and even though today was just like any other day, the city herself appeared more lively as the crystal seemed to shine brighter.

Yet, the giant quintessence crystal wasn’t the only thing glowing across the oceans. Most of the citizens of Altea found themselves beaming.

Why? The answer is quite simple.

Because, even though today was a day like all the others, today was also a special day and every single mermaid knew it. From the young little ones to the elders, the news traveled across the waters with the currents, enlightening everyone and anyone.

The eminent Altean castle was no exception to the turmoil. Quite the opposite, actually. The Altean castle was the center of it. Left and right, everyone seemed to be extra busy on that day. Mermaids dashing down the long marble halls. Mermaid swimming back to where they were moments ago. The whole place was an undeniable mess.

Allura’s baby blue eyes followed the movement curiously, and the small princess wondered if the day she had been born had been just as busy. The young princess swam down the hall, easily spotting her father exiting one of the many rooms of the palace.

“Father?” She hesitated for a moment before swimming closer to the King, avoiding the growing confusion around her.

“Allura, Dear? What are you doing here?” His voice was soft but filled with concern, “You should be in your room.”

“I know, Father. I’m sorry.” The princess spoke, immediately regretting disobeying. She looked away, unable to face her father’s graceful blue eyes.

Alfor smiled, approaching the little mermaid carefully, “It’s ok, Darling. Did something happen?”

Allura peered at him, slowly shaking her head to answer the question. “I just wanted to see Mother.” Her voice was barely above a whisper as the king’s soft smile grew wider. “I miss her.”

“I know… You’ll see her soon,” he offered, playfully rubbing her cheeks near the pink markings, which made Allura laugh. “And you will get to meet your baby brother too.”

“Really? When?” She beamed suddenly, “Have you seen him? Is he small? What color is his tail? Or the markings?”

Alfor smiled, failing to hide most of his laugh, “He hasn’t been born yet, Dear.” He noticed as Allura’s mouth dropped into a small ‘o’ of acknowledgment before he continued, voice firm yet incredibly sweet, “But it won't take long.”

The princess's eyes lit up, filled with the soft glow of happiness.

_Happiness that would be short-lived._

It was subtle, like the soft shifting of currents that never seemed to made up their mind.

The princess observed with curious eyes as another mermaid approached her father. He had armour on, which clearly indicated he was one of the royal guards. His tanned face was as pale as the colorless crystals when he spoke. Allura barely heard him, but by the way her father’s face twisted, she knew, it couldn’t be good news.

“Father?”

The King looked at her, eyes widening for a slim moment like he had almost forgotten his daughter was present. He looked around, easily spotting his royal advisor.

“Coran, please take Allura back to her room.” The king requested between the princess’s confused glare.

The ginger man did not oppose, smiling to Allura and offering her his hand. The princess looked back inquisitive, but she remained silent as Coran guided her through the halls.

“What is happening?” Her voice was dull, but the older man heard her.

“Nothing you should concern yourself with, princess.” His smile failed to hold the gracefulness of the previous one.

“I just heard an alarm ring! I want to know what is happening!” Her demand would have sounded threatening if her voice wasn’t so childish.

The man acknowledged her curiosity, softly nodding before saying, “We are under attack.”

“What? But-”

“No more questions now, princess,” he told her, signaling her to enter the room they had just reached, “It will be over soon. You’re safe here. Do not worry.”

But she did. And her worry wasn't as hollow as one might think.

 

On a different wing of the castle, the queen couldn’t help but look around when the alarm went off.

She knew very well what such a dreadful sound meant. She knew perfectly well they were under attack.

But, it felt so unreal. To think humans would dare to come to the depths just to hunt them. Those beasts caused nothing but destruction and suffering, and now, not even their home felt safe.

The queen held the small mermaid closer, cradling him in her arms with care while worrying that her own son would have to grow up in an era of war. She softly brushed her fingers through his beautiful white hair, observing as his gorgeous blue eyes seemed to study the place, completely unaware of the terrible events that had preceded his birth.

The queen smiled when the baby looked at her, beaming happily and reaching to her with his small tanned hands. She poked his little nose with the tip of her finger watching the little mermaid giggle and reach to grab her finger. And for a slim moment, everything seemed perfect.

But soon, that moment ended.

The queen’s face twisted with worry when her small child started to cry. At first, she didn’t find it strange, but she soon realised what was happening.

It was the crystal.

When it chooses a new host, it rarely happens at birth but for some reason, that was what happened. It was a rare situation. But rare didn’t mean impossible. There were a few reports about it, unveiling how sometimes, the connection between a young mermaid and the crystal is too strong for the host to support it.

And Lance definitely had a stronger connection than even hers.

It was terrifying to know that the fate of their society had suddenly been lifted from her shoulders just to be pushed into a small and frail baby.

But there was nothing she could do about it. The crystal had picked his host, and no one had the power to change such fate. She knew it would have to happen eventually and that either Lance or Allura would have to create a link with the crystal while hers would die out, so they could take her place. But, she couldn’t help but wish that it hadn’t happened to her children, or that, they would at least be free of such a burden until they were older.

Yet, the world was a cruel and merciless place.

The radiant and cheerful laughs of her child were rapidly replaced by cries and tears. Lance’s connection to the crystal was strong, really strong. Strong enough to endanger the little prince and consequently, their entire society. He was too young to controls his own magic, his small and young body too frail to sustain a link that had the weight of the whole ocean.

Fortunately, there was a simple solution to stop the power from destroying its host. A simple crystal, just like all the other quintessence crystals with the ability to establish links with the main crystal that lived on top of their great city and the other small crystals that spread through the ocean, but also with a special ability. The power to absorb Altean magic.

It was a rare gift, and unfortunately, something powerful enough to endanger them if it fell into the wrong hands. And that was why only the person with the strongest bond to the crystal was allowed to know about it. It was a secret passed down from parent to child, that the queen would have to tell her son about when the prince was old enough.

But that time would never come.

The queen held the little prince closer to her chest, while her tail struck the water wildly, as she dashed across the waters to the place where she knew that crystal was safely stored.

Lance’s cries traveled in the waters like wildfire, and the queen could barely keep herself from shaking when her little baby started to lighten up like a crystal himself. It was too much.

Not just the power, but his connection with the ocean allowed him to feel it to an extent most mermaids never would. The queen understood this better than anyone since her connection with the crystal was said to have been impressive. She could feel the emotions of her people flow in her if she allowed it to happen, and she knew that during a bloody battle these sensations weren’t the best to feel.

But Lance couldn’t cut them off. He could barely keep his blue eyes open anymore.

She had no choice, but to use it.

The moment the white haired mermaid placed the necklace with a small crystal hanging around Lance’s neck, she immediately felt the poor prince relax.

The crystal didn’t absorb all the magic instantly, but it did consume enough of it to allow the small prince to stop crying.

She sighed in relief, grateful that the blue crystal really did what she had been told, and enjoyed the warmth of the body in her arms. For a moment, she was so grateful, the thoughts of the war and the battle, currently happening around her, disappeared. The only thing that existed was the small mermaid in her arms, softly opening his dazzling blue eyes again, to greet her.

The queen smiled when the small prince reached to play with her white hair, and for a moment the only thing she was able to do was holding him closer.

She was called off her daze by a strong tremor that made the buildings rubble and the baby cry, again. Only then, did she found herself staring at the little mermaid again and realising how his once white hair had become brown. It wasn’t much of a deal, and it meant the crystal was doing its job.

“Mother?” The queen turned around, spotting her daughter looking at her with tearful eyes. Another tremor followed and Allura swam to her. “What is going on?”

That was indeed a question she had no answer for, and even if she had, it would probably be unwise to enlighten her small daughter.

“I’m not sure, darling.” She said softly, comforting the little girl. Something big was happening. Her connection had been severely reduced when the crystal picked Lance as it’s new host, but even though the queen's powers were weaker than before, she was still stronger than most mermaids, and she knew perfectly well, she had to do something.

“I am so sorry to ask this of you, sweety.” The queen looked at her daughter, smiling softly, “I know you are scared. But I promise you everything will be ok.” Allura looked at her reluctantly. “I know it’s hard, but right now, I need you to be a good big sister and take care of your little brother,” she said carefully, “Can you do that?”

The princess seemed uncertain but nodded anyway.

The queen smiled, placing the baby in her daughter's arms, “He is too young, darling. You have to take care of him and protect him until Mother returns.”

“Where are you going?” Allura asked, moving slightly in the direction her mother was taking, “I don’t want to be alone.”

The white haired woman couldn’t help but smile, “You’re not alone.” she said, approaching the girl again, “You are never alone. You have me, and father, and Lance,” she placed her tanned hand on the small prince and Allura smiled when he reached to play with it, “And you have the whole ocean with you, darling. You’re never alone.”

Lance seemed to acknowledge someone else is holding him, and soon he is trying to reach the glowing marks in Allura’s cheeks. She laughed and he laughed back.

The queen smiled, “I will see you two, soon. Take care of Lance. Don’t let anything happen to him, ok?”

Allura nodded while she moved the finger Lance had grabbed and enjoyed as he tried to keep his hold on it. “I won't let anything happen to him.” she uttered with all the determination a child could have, “I’ll see you soon.”

_She wouldn’t._

Allura never learned what happened, but from that day onwards, their great city gained a gleaming shield around it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Answers have been given. But not the ones you wanted (prob)
> 
> I've had this written for a while but procrastination. (Sorry ^^')
> 
> Next chapter will have the answers you want, but it will take a while because it's kinda of a long chapter and I probably won't be able to work on it until my holidays. 
> 
> Thanks for reading :D


	12. Chapter 12

It felt unreal.

Surreal even.

The way the cold night suddenly took over. Yet, even though he was so sure it had been raining for a while, everything felt unbelievably droughty. The air around him seemed too warm, drying his throat with every breath he was forced to take.

It was hard to breathe, to speak, to scream. His eyes were a blur, and he could see nothing but the fog circling him.

Everything and everyone near him seemed to disappear, fading into the nothingness. There were voices, there were screams but they all sounded like silence to him, just a soft breeze passing by.

He wasn’t quite sure what he should do. What _he could_ do.

So he picked the worst possible choice he could ever make, _and watched._

A shiver ran down his spine and, even though he could have sworn he had been engulfed in a drought just a moment ago, suddenly the air felt too cold and humid. He couldn’t help but close his hand, feeling freezing fingers turn paler as he clenched them harder.

It was certainly raining because why else would his face be so damp?

Why else would he feel so melancholic?

So sad. 

Broken.

He tried to push those feelings away. Make them leave him and put his mind at ease, but as he looked forward, everything shattered back to the place where it had begun. The feelings he had tried so hard to drive away, to ignore and hide, only seemed to settle more inside him when he locked eyes with him.

Those piercing blue betrayed enough to become glassy. Those piercing blue that he just knew, would never look at him the same way.

But that was alright. He could bear with it. He had to.

If losing him was the price to pay, then he had to let go.

 

A bolt of lightning seemed to crash into the shores, shaking him awake from his traitorous mind, and making the heavy rain only grow stronger. He stayed still, looking at the only thing that wasn’t a blur while allowing the water to wash him over, to clean him and take away everything he hated so much.

And it was raining, it really was raining. But the refreshing blessing of water washing him did nothing to take away the pain, as he looked at him _and watched_. In fact, the rain only seemed to suffocate him more, and he knew, he just knew it was punishment for forsaking him.

For betraying him.

For leaving him behind.

This was the exact moment Keith realised he was dreaming. Because it _had_ to be a dream.

No. This was no dream.

_It was a nightmare._

That was the only possible explanation for what was happening. Because Keith knew, he would never let this happen to him.

But he did. He did and his own mind would never forgive him, forever haunting him with the memory of those piercing blue. Keeping every single image before his eyes, and every single feeling crippling in his skin.

And he wanted to scream, he wanted to close his eyes and look away, but he couldn’t. Because he had to watch.

 

He had to watch how he screamed and growled, trying to scare his enemies away. But it only gave them more reasons to believe he was a monster.

He had to watch how he fought their hold, desperate to release himself. But it only made them secure him more tightly.

He watched, how those blue eyes looked at him. How they begged him. How they fought the tears away. He watched the exact moment they lost their colour, and merely became as lifeless as he felt.

And on that moment he knew.

_He had lost it all._

His clothes to get completely damp when the reinforcements they had called, arrived. And once more, he did what he had been doing the whole time. And continued to watch.

He watched them pass through him, watched them close in on him.

And he just wanted to look away. Close his eyes, and pretend that he was not here. But he was. And he refused to take the easy road - Pretending it wasn’t happening. Pretending it wasn’t his fault. Pretending he wasn’t guilty.

He couldn’t allow himself to sink that low.

So he watched, face stoic and emotionless, as they hurt him. How rough hands grabbed him, binding the monster to the point where it could barely flinch.

The ugly gag was the first thing, easily shoved into the mermaid’s mouth without care. It was thoughtfully secured, to ensure the beast would not sing, or scream.

Then, it was his arms. Tightly pressed against each other, tied in a way that would make his claws completely useless to harm others, or himself.

The tail followed, bound to his locked wrists with a precision that made him more sick than impressed.

And in a blink of an eye, the mermaid was completely secured, bound to ensure the monster wouldn’t hurt anyone.

But, Lance would’ve never hurt anyone.

He wasn't even fighting back anymore, he hadn't been for a long time. Or at least, it felt like a long time. It made Keith wonder what it had exactly happened. When had Lance, that passionate fighter that refused to give up and had the strength to believe when others were already dwelling in hopelessness, stopped to fight back?

Pidge approached him suddenly, shouting next to him in pure bliss, happy and virtuous screams. The rest of his teammates followed while the higher-ups took over the capture of the mermaid.

Keith didn't bother to celebrate. If they asked him what was wrong he could blame it on how tired he was feeling, or in anything else really. Purple eyes moved with the mermaid, unable to leave the sight, wondering what would happen once he lost sight of him.

They were roughness, clearly hurting him with every action they took, yet, Lance didn't make a sound.

He didn't cry or begged them to stop as the pain took over. He was so far gone, lost behind those glassy eyes.

Keith found himself biting his bottom lip, his pale hand cutting through the rain to reach forward.

But Lance was in a place he couldn’t reach.

The rain stopped suddenly, and with it, the only noise that filled his ears. The silence was suffocating, and Keith was sure he couldn't even hear his own breathing. Maybe, because he wasn’t.

Two piercing blue orbs stared back at him from the voiceless darkness that had engulfed him,  

_This is all your fault…_

 

Keith woke up suddenly, voice hoarse and broken enough to make him wonder, for _how long had he been screaming_. He immediately rose from his bed, sitting up straight on a corner of the bunk bed while taking deep breaths.

His face was damp with sweat, crawling over him like a second skin, while his dark hair was glued to his nape. A chill ran down his spine as he felt the cold drop of water slide down his neck.

Keith took a deep breath, breathing in just to breathe back out. He repeated the process more than a couple of times, hoping it would clear his mind.

But his hands were shaking, and as much as he tried to breathe in and out evenly, his heart only seemed to speed up more. He tried closing his violet eyes, but flashed from his dream kicked in.

“It was just a dream…” He mumbled to himself, hoping the words would help his erratic heartbeat slow down. It wasn’t unusual to wake up in a cold sweat, and those words came to him more out of habit than anything else. Nights and nights dreaming about what could have happened to Shiro had lead him here.

Keith barely managed to breathe out, before everything was coming back to him. That wasn’t a dream.

It was real.

The way Lance had looked at him. And how the exact moment Lance lost his faith in him was engraved in his mind.

It was real.

Unlike the nightmares from before. This had truly happened.

The crippling fear followed, drowning him too easily.

 _It’s not my fault,_ he tried to remind himself. The words were stuck to his tongue, and sooner than later, Keith was repeating them like a prayer.

“It was not my fault.” He said, pronouncing every word clearly. Barely above a whisper, but loud enough to be heard.

It sounded fake.

Which was not surprising, since he didn’t believe those words himself.

“It’s all my fault...”

His voice sounded foreign, but the words settled in him too easily, and it felt like the whole world had fallen on his shoulders.

_It’s all my fault. I should’ve… I… He…_

There barely was a second before everything seemed to shatter, and the small walls he had managed to build, crumbled to pieces when those thoughts of hopelessness filled him again.

Keith’s hands clenched, and his teeth found their way into his bottom lip.

He had cried enough. He wasn’t going to do it again. He was tired of it.

The only thing it did was bring a terrible headache and leave him even more miserable.

His skin seemed to burn, just like the salty tears in his eyes. Keith’s right hand clenched around the bed sheets as if the gesture would be enough to redirect all the madness he was feeling to it.

Keith was exasperated.

Blood boiling in his own veins as he resented himself. He was furious with his own self for being so weak and powerless. He was mad at Lance for doubting him so easily. He was so frustrated, and it angered Keith that he had to put Lance through it all.

But what else was he supposed to do?

Pidge had pinned him down like he was a child. His body was tired from the battle and he was in no state to fight back, against his smaller friend, or anyone else from his team. Lance hadn’t seemed to be having more luck. He had looked completely lost, unable to fight back even to defend himself.

And then, there were those eyes. The eyes of his teammates. Eyes of people that had lost so much to the sea, consumed by fear and hatred. And Keith knew, because he once had those same eyes. He knew so well they were not thinking. That they would stop at nothing until Lance was dead. Until the monstrous sea creature, that had killed their friends and family, has no more.

There was no reasoning with madness. So he had to get their attention. Make them realise they wanted the mermaid alive.

Make them realise that they had to capture it.

 

He had done what he could. And maybe... No. There was most certainly a better way to help Lance. But on that moment, in the cold sand, when he realised what was about to happen to him. He just couldn’t think of anything else.

So yes. He had captured Lance. But now? Now, he was going to rescue him.

Return him to the place where he belonged, and make sure he would go home as safely as possible.

He had promised.

Himself, the moment he fired the gun.

And Hunk, the day right after.

It had happened almost as a reflex. The way Keith had left the garrison facility, his feet guiding him through a path he had grown used to after wandering over it for so many times. Before Keith could think what he was doing, his feet had guided him to their meeting point.

The place where he and Lance met almost every day, talking and laughing about nothing at all.

Being back to that beautiful place only made it more real. The white sand and the crystal clear waters seemed empty, without anyone there waiting for him.

Being back to that beautiful place only made him feel more hollow.

He was not expecting to find Hunk there. He wasn’t ready to face anyone yet. He was barely managing to face himself.

“Human-Keith!” The voice was uncomfortably familiar, and instantly sent a chill of pure panic across Keith’s entire being. He froze, debating inside his mind if he could even turn around and face the mermaid. “You’re alright!”

Hunk seemed happy to see him. His pointy white teeth peering between his lips as he smiled. Keith found himself wondering how long he would remain that way.

It was obvious that Hunk didn’t know what had happened.

The human was called back to reality before his mind could consume him once more, “Human-Keith!” He noticed a small hint of worry in Hunk’s brown eyes, “I’m sorry, man. But Lance is gone and we have to find him! Allura is freaking out and-”

Keith stopped listening what he was saying around that line. His purple eyes observed as Hunk’s lips kept moving and moving, faster and faster, to a point where Keith’s heartbeat decided to follow their rhythm. Suddenly it felt so hard to breathe.

He was panting, every time he tried to breathe in it only felt like he was asphyxiating. Keith bit his bottom lip, trying to follow Hunk’s words, “Do you know where he is?”

He heard at some point.

“Do you know what happened?”

The question followed soon after.

Hunk went quiet for a moment, staring at the human teen in front of him, easily acknowledging how uncomfortable he felt.

The mermaid was freaking out, rambling with pure panic every word he could remember. Every sentence he could process.

The human was just as frenetic, panic peeking behind his eyes. He couldn’t move or talk. He could barely even breathe. The air felt so heavy, crushing him without mercy.

“Are you ok?” The words broke his panic like a knife cutting through butter. Two purple eyes looked at the mermaid standing in front of him.

“I’m sorry,” the words came out as a soft whimper, “I am really sorry. This is all my fault. I-”

His brows furrowed for a moment, and Keith found himself looking away.

“Keith?” Hunk’s eyes somehow found a way to stare at him, piercing his body and soul. “This is not your fault.” Soft. The words were much softer than he expected.

Not panic. Not screams or tears of hatred, just, understanding.

“Lance started this, and he got himself and all of us into this mess!”

Keith took a step back as if the words were too much to physically take, “No, Hunk. You’re not understanding. I-”

“I’ve known Lance for a while. And I don’t really need to know the whole story to figure that he is just as responsible for this.”

“No. No! It was me! I was the one that- I was responsible for- I captured him!”

This time was Hunk’s turn to shrink, looking at Keith in surprise.

And now, was Keith's turn to ramble every word he could remember, “They were going to kill him. I couldn’t let them do that. But I didn’t know what to do. Everything happened so fast, and I just wanted to make sure they wouldn’t kill him… I couldn't stop them. I-”

Hunk took in a deep breath, before carefully asking for details on what had happened. Keith answered, constantly avoiding his gaze.

“What happened to Lance was my fault…” He mumbled the words, only loud enough for the mermaid to hear them as if keeping his voice down would allow him to hide the truth from the rest of the world. Hunk remained silent, allowing the human to say everything he wanted to say.

It was obvious to him that Keith had everything bottled up, to the point where he could barely even process it himself. It was also obvious to him that Keith had saved them all.

“I guess I should thank you.”

Keith turned to face him for the first time in quite a while. His brows were furrowed and his lips pursed in confusion. “Didn’t you just heard what I said?” He asked in a panicked voice.

Hunk nodded, smiling softly. “I heard everything you said. Now it’s your turn.” The human made a small effort to protest, but nothing passed past his lips. He remained as quiet as the wind, waiting for the mermaid to continue, “A lot has happened in the pasts days. A lot has changed. And that applies to Lance too.” Hunk made a brief pause, carefully breathing in before continuing, in a rambling tone, “I don’t know if he noticed it, but it's obvious to all of us. Allura kind of confirmed it too, so I guess it really is true.”

Keith rose an eyebrow, eyeing the yellow tailed mermaid curiously. But he said nothing.

“The thing is, Lance is definitely the one connected to the crystal!”

“What?” Keith eloquently mumbled out.

“You know… being connected to the giant crystal as in being our rightful ruler and all that.” The mermaid looked at Keith for a moment, surprised with his ignorance on the matter at hands. “I could have sworn Lance had told you about this…”

“He has, but- I thought Allura was the one linked to the crystal.”

“So did we.” Hunk nodded in agreement, “But she isn’t. Lance is. And if he had died back there our entire civilisation would have died with him.”

Keith felt the panic creeping across his skin. Those were not good news, this meant that if Lance died, every single mermaid would die with him. This meant, that if Lance died, Keith would be responsible for wiping out an entire civilisation that had done nothing wrong.

“I-”

“You saved us all, man!” Hunk offered, “Thank you.”

Keith shook his head, “No. I doomed you all. Lance is still in there and there’s no telling what will happen to him. I shouldn’t have- But I just couldn’t let them kill him.”

“Allura is freaking out. I’ve never seen her like that before. She tries to hide it, but I've known her for a while. I can see beyond the calm facade she is trying to pull,” Hunk offered, eyeing Keith carefully, “I’m afraid she’ll try something crazy, but- the thing is… There isn’t much a mermaid can do on land.”

“She can’t do anything…” Keith mumbled out the conclusion almost simultaneously.

“I wouldn’t go that far, _she’s Allura_ , but… yeah. And the fact that Lance is the one linked to the crystal only makes matters worse. This isn't just about her brother being taken. This is about our entire civilisation being on the brink of collapse.”

Keith’s eyes widened, silently registering everything that was being said. He listened, as every word only came to confirm his fears, drowning him in the creeping panic from within. He managed to take a deep breath, allowing his mind to settle.

It didn’t matter. Nothing of that mattered.

“This… It doesn’t change anything.” He looked at the mermaid, “I was going to rescue Lance and get him out of there alive anyway. This changes nothing.” He was surprised that somehow his voice hadn’t betrayed him.

Hunk seemed relieved, but he said nothing.

“I need to know something… How much time do I have left?”

The mermaid easily understood what Keith was talking about. “It changes from mermaid to mermaid, but no longer than 3 days. I would say you have 1 or 2 more days before Lance," he hesitated. Keith nodded sparing Hunk from finishing the sentence.

He didn’t have much time.

But he had enough time.

“I’ll do it tomorrow without fail. I’ll make sure to bring him back here.” Keith gave him a reassuring smile, the best one he could, “I have a friend in the garrison. I’m sure. With Pidge’s help, things will go smoothly.“

The brown eyed mermaid smiled, breathing out sharply, “Thank you, Keith!”

“Save that for when he is here.”

Hunk launched forwards, his arms easily circling Keith, “Lance was right!” Keith tensed as the mermaid pulled him into a hug, “You really are a nice guy, Keith.”

The human relaxed, smiling shyly. He wondered if Lance still had that opinion about him.

“Hunk? Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah, sure man! Anything.”

“Can you please be here tomorrow? Around the same time today.”

“Yeah! Of course, Human-Keith!”

“I’ll have Lance with me. I promise.”

 

“Keith?” He was suddenly called back from his mind. Both his eyes peered to look at his friend Pidge, “You’re awake! Great! Iverson has been looking for you. Something about congratulating you for your amazing performance on the mission.”

He ignored most of what his roommate had said, “Actually, Pidge. I need to talk to you…”

 

* * *

 

Allura was alone.

Just like the moon was lonesome in a sky full of stars, Allura was alone in the vastness of the waters that surrounded Altea.

She could almost feel the bags under her eyes and how her hair didn’t hold its magnificent and soft appearance anymore. Coran had come looking for her at least a thousand time in the past quintent. Telling her to rest. Bringing her food to eat. Reminding her how to keep breathing. How to keep it together.

Allura knew the importance of every word he said. She understood it better than anyone. She knew perfectly well her role and how important it was for her to remain in control, especially during a crisis like this. She couldn’t allow the panic and fear of what was to come to be their doom. That would have been a miserable end to their impressive society.

Something had to be done. She knew. Allura had to do something to fix this mess. No matter the consequences.

The princess knew perfectly well that she should rest, yet every time, every single time she closed her eyes and tried to drift back to sleep, hoping to regain her strength, everything became too clear.

The soft way her mother’s voice filled her ears as if she was standing right next to her, making her promise that she would take care of Lance.

Making her promise she would protect him with her life.

The faint way her voice came out, almost cracking, holding a confidence that wasn’t there at all.

 _I won't let anything happen to him,_ a promise.

But now, her arms were empty. The weight of her baby brother was gone.

And she was the only one to blame.

Everything had sunken as easily as a human ship. Because, now, Lance wasn’t just her little helpless brother.

No.

Now, Lance was the rightful ruler of Altea, the one with the strongest connection to the crystal. Without him, their entire civilisation would perish. No mermaid could survive on land. They were bonded to the ocean just as they were to the crystal. If he did not return to the sea in the next few days, he would most certainly die, the crystal would lose its power and life, and every single mermaid would follow.

And everything they had work so hard to preserve, everything her mother and father had built, would be lost, taken away by the tides of the sea.

Allura sighed, allowing her head to sink between her hands. Everything had happened so fast, and before she could do anything to stop it, it was already over.

And now, now her mother’s words made sense. She understood. They weren’t just a prayer to protect her newborn son, they were a plea to save her people, her country, her civilisation. Now, everything made sense.

His ability to overhear her orders, ignore them even as she used her powers on him. How others always ended up listening to his requests above Allura’s orders. The signs were there, it should have been enough to help her realise, but she had overlooked it like everything else.

Lance was the one the crystal had chosen.

That detail, that vital piece of information, fitted like a long lost puzzle piece. A piece of a puzzle Allura had been trying to put together in the past few years. That piece. That small innocent detail changed everything.

Her heartbeat picked up on her chest,

She would have done so many things differently.

She would have done _everything_ differently if it meant not losing Lance.

But it was too late now.

Even the most powerful of mermaids were powerless on land. Allura or Lance. Even both of their powers combined wouldn't make a difference. It was suicide. A lost cause to attack the land. Nothing but taking her people to their deaths.

She knew.

She knew, but the thought of what those heartless creatures were doing to her brother constantly peered in her mind.

The altean princess sighed, hoping she could blow away all her internal struggles.

She had to do something. That much was obvious.

It was her decision. Either to sacrifice her people for a chance to get her brother back, or leave him and their society to die.

She couldn't let him die. But Allura couldn't bring herself to shed the blood of her people. This was her fault and her mistake, and she refused to let others fight her battles, receive her scars or die in her place. That much was settled.

But there was no point in swimming to her death. If Allura wanted to get her brother back, she would have to be smart about. She wasn't that young little mermaid crying for help anymore. She was stronger and more than capable to do something.

Desperation wasn't always a weakness. It could also be a strength.

Something was very obvious to the princess. If she couldn't go to the land, if she had no power outside the waters, she would need to find something that gave her an advantage, something she could use to bring Lance back.

Coran, who had entered the room moments ago, looked worried, eyeing his princess carefully. He had entered unannounced, eyeing the younger mermaid and wishing he could lift at least part of the weight she had always carried on her shoulders. For a long while he said nothing, but as Allura’s face twisted and her eyebrows frowned he decided to interview.

"You're overthinking, Princess," the tone of his voice was gentle, yet Allura seemed to jump slightly. Coran smiled warningly, concern radiation in his features, "You need to rest..."

"I know Coran, but I can not bring myself to rest with everything that has happened." She tried to smile, but the light in her eyes was missing, "I have to find a way to bring Lance back or we're all doomed."

Coran seemed to want to add something to their conversation, but he remained quiet, rethinking his argument.

Allura didn't notice his change of heart. She was too focused on something else, eyes looking at nothing in particular as she thought.

Her voice came out weak, slowly growing with a soft hint of excitement, "I know what we can do, Coran!" There was indeed radiance in her tone, and a smile on her lips. Yet, the old man had known the princess ever since she was a small little mermaid. He could see the worry in her smile, and the insecurities in her eyes, maybe a bit too clearly.

"Princess?"

He could also see how determined she was, "We have human prisoners! We can do an exchange!"

"Princess, I-" The advisor seemed surprised, his moustache twisting with the oceans waters, "That is too dangerous! You can't trust humans to keep their word!"

"I don't like the idea that much either, but it's the only way! And I'll do everything it takes to get my brother back!"

Her word was final. The word of the ruler of Altea. A great woman, and a greater leader.

Allura wasn't planning on losing any more time. She had lost more than enough of the few she had.

The princess swam hurriedly, dismissing the curious looks she received, and focusing on the job at hands. This could possibly be her only chance to rescue Lance without having to endanger her people, and the princess had all the intentions to make it count.

At the entrance of the prison, Allura addressed the guards positioned there, ensuring that she would not be disturbed unless the problem was of the utmost importance. Then, she swam inside.

The place was poorly lighted but she could see enough to guide herself through the labyrinth of jails and metal bars. Most of them were empty, and the princess wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not. Allura knew exactly where she needed to go, and that was where she headed without a moment of hesitation.

The look of surprise painted on the humans face did not go unnoticed by the princess. She barely spared them a look, directing herself to the one closer to the metal bars.

Allura spoke calmly, head raised high as she looked at them, “I have a couple of questions for you." The older human seemed perplexed. His grey eyes widened for a second as the white tuft of hair on top of his head moved with a passing water current. His mouth tentatively opened, making him look like a fish breathing. She spoke before he could say anything, locking an icy cold gaze with him, "And you quiznacking humans better answer all of them truthfully or I will feed you to the sharks myself."

The princess had no intention of killing the humans, nor drag the sharks' attention to their civilisation. Her only objective was to get her point across. And, by the looks on the human’s face, she had managed that just fine.

The other prisoner remained father away, looking at them worriedly, probably wondering if their time had come.

“I assume you humans value your life.” There was carefulness in her words. No point in giving out too much information anyway, “I am willing to let you both go. But under one condition.”

Grey eyes gazed at her curiously, but silence remained.

“I believe it is of common interest to make an exchange of prisoners.”

Shiro found himself gasping before he could contain himself. If the princesses noticed it, she ignored his reaction completely, “One of my people was taken alive and I want to make a trade.” Her voice did not waver, hiding her weakness in plain sight.

The human seemed surprised, and Allura had certainly heard the other one mumble cautiously, “Alive?”

When the mermaid looked at his face, she recoiled. Just like the other one, he seemed surprised. Yet, there was something else there. Something along the lines of anxiety, maybe even fear. The princess did not find it assuming at all, but she made an effort for her face to remain stoic.

“How can I contact your leaders?” She questioned.

Shiro looked back at his friend before gazing at the mermaid in front of him.

He had no doubt about her status. “Your Highness?” Shiro was rather surprised that his voice didn't show how nervous he felt. He had no idea how he should talk to a member of the royalty, especially from such a different civilisation. But he wanted to warn her. Hopefully, he could do it without sounding offensive. “With all due respect. You might not want to do that.”

“Are you trying to order me around?”

She sounded beyond offended. Shiro was certain Matt was giving him _the look_. He could almost hear him mumble sarcastically under his breath, ‘Great... Great communication skills, Shiro’.

“No!” The human rushed to offer an answer to the princess, and before she could add anything else, he tried to rephrase his point, “I only meant to say that our lives mean nothing to the garrison. They won't agree to anything like a prisoner trade.”

For the first time in the entire conversation, Shiro saw a hint of emotion in the mermaid’s face. She looked surprised, completely taken aback by his comment.

“But," She hesitated, "You are humans are you not? Does your race not care for their own?”

“Of course we do!” Shiro heard Matts voice sound behind him, “But this is different.”

“How so?” The princess questioned.

“The garrison won’t trade for our lives because they want us dead.” Shiro tried to offer an explanation. The look of skepticism on the beautiful face in front of him was enough to let him know he had to elaborate his explanation.

Shiro knew exactly who he was talking to. He knew perfectly well their lives had been spared. But, he also understood there was no point in lying. He wasn’t sure how much the princess knew, but he had to try. He had to somehow make her trust, or at least, believe in him. “Our leaders only have their own interests in mind. They don't care about us,” he spoke calmly looking towards his friend, and then back at the princess, “Or you.” The princess remained quiet. “If they have what they want, there is no bargaining with them.”

There was a moment of silence where neither of them said a word. Allura was the first one to speak, “And you agree with this? You live like this and do nothing to change it?” The was a hint of a flame in her voice.

“They don’t make it obvious.” Shiro answered with a sad smile, “They have an entire web of lies fabricated to keep people from asking the real questions. And wherever someone finds too much,”

“They are sent to their deaths.” The mermaid concluded.

She turned around, wondering if she should trust the human or not. In a way, what he said seemed to match what her brother had tried to tell her. If she had just listened. Yet, at the same time, Allura couldn’t bring herself to trust them. Not after everything they had done.

“What makes you think I believe in what you’re saying?”

“I don’t expect you to trust us.” The human offered sincerely, “Humanity has done terrible things to your kind.” Two grey eyes locked with hers, staring right through her, “But we're not all the same." Shiro offered as truthfully as he could. He was not a threat to her, and he wanted to leave that clear. "I recognise my mistakes, but I want to stop this war.”

Allura wasn’t sure if she wanted to stop the war.

_She didn’t._

Allura just wanted her brother back.

The realisation stroke her like a crashing wave. If what those humans had said was the truth, if their lives truly were meaningless for their leaders, then she had lost the only chance she thought she had.

Without a way to bargain, Allura had to way to save her brother. No way to bring him home.

“Princess?” The human's voice was too soft, and it only made her feel more vulnerable.

“You’re lying.”

“I wish I was…” There was a hint of sadness in the reply. It was more than enough for her to know he was telling the truth.

“No. I do not believe in your lies. You humans are all the same. Lying through your teeth is your nature.”

She refused to believe. Refused to let them take the only ray of hope she had seen in the past few days. This was the only card she had to play. Without this, she had nothing.

Allura couldn’t do this anymore. She needed something. She just wanted a way to rescue her little brother. To bring him back home.

“Your brother?” Allura looked at the brown haired human, wondering if she had been talking out loud, or if only a couple of words had escaped her lips. “The mermaid they took was your brother?” There was a hint of sympathy there. Allura hated it. She bit back the tears, refusing to show how weak she felt.

“Yes.” Her words were like venom, “You humans took away my brother and you humans are going to give him back to me!”

Shiro wondered for a moment how desperate she had to be, to come look for answers amongst them. In a way, he understood her perfectly. He knew Matt did too.

“If he was captured alive then they won't kill him.” Shiro offered, hoping it could bring at least some comfort knowing he was still alive.

“That doesn’t matter.” Allura did not care if she was saying too much. She would kill them both before they could tell anyone, “Mermaids can’t survive apart from the sea. Even if they don’t kill him... They will.”

Shiro didn’t know about that. He had no idea mermaids were linked to the ocean like that, but somehow it explained why she had her hands tied.

He couldn’t be sure, but if he was correct, the mermaid that had been captured was the same one Shiro had spoken to a couple days ago.  

There had certainly been a royal appearance to him.

 _But I promise I’ll get you out as soon as I can!_ The mermaid had told him, much to Shiro’s surprised.

He did not seem to hate their kind one bit or to fear them. 

He sounded so sincere and truly relieved to find him. If he was telling the truth - and Shiro believed he was - then that mermaid was Keith’s friend. Somehow. And he had promised Keith to save Shiro.

The human instantly became aware of something very important.

That mermaid was Keith’s friend. Which meant, there was no way Keith would just stay still and do nothing about it. And knowing him like Shiro did…

Yet, before he could say anything - before Shiro could offer his help - Allura was speaking. The look of determination was back to her beautiful features. Somehow, it suited her. “You value your companion’s life do you not?” Her voice was cold. Too cold. She had nothing left to lose. He knew too well the feeling.

“Yes…” Shiro reluctantly answered.

“Then, you better listen carefully.”

 

* * *

 

Pidge had always been good at figuring stuff out. For the younger cadet, Logical reasoning was like a given asset of Pidge's mind. That came, not only with a slightly better talent for maths and technology than most people had but also with the moderately good ability to read people. Ability that Pidge had certainly perfected throughout the years.

So, it was no surprise when Keith’s _“I need to talk to you, Pidge”_  left the smaller cadet wary and suspicious. Pidge knew that sentence. That tone. That look, even. And it was _never_ good news.

But that was not all. Pidge couldn't neglect what was probably the most important detail - It had to be taken into consideration that it had been Keith saying that.

Keith. The loner. The 'I do things by myself, my own way' guy. The guy that barely opened up to anyone. The one Pidge had to work pretty hard to get his attention and his “friendship” - If they could call their relationship that. So yeah, whatever Keith had to say was bad, really bad. 

No doubt about that.

Yet, all of Pidge’s amazing reasoning and deductive skills could never, ever, prepare the younger teen for what was coming.

_Everything is a lie. Everything the garrison have told us is a lie._

Pidge wasn’t stupid. It was clear to the cadet that the garrison had lied to them, and that was the ok part. That Pidge could understand.

Keith seemed to know what he was talking about as he explained what he knew, as he explained what he had learned and uncovered about the garrison. Most of it made sense, but there was a simple question peeping out at Keith’s little friend's mind throughout most of his explanation,

_How did you learn all that?_

It didn’t take long for Pidge to be dragged out of her mind, suddenly forced to listen to one of the worst mistakes ever made in the history of logic and deductive reasoning. Keith did not seem to notice how his friend twisted. How the pale face frowned. How the small lips pursed.

Pidge allowed him to continue for a while, trying to understand what had led him to think that. Yet, unfortunately to the younger teen, nonsense was only followed by nonsense.

“What?” The smaller cadet eloquently stated, amber eyes growing bigger behind the round glasses, “I don’t think I understood what you just said…” Pidge merely stated. Keith seemed to pout, eyes looking to the side and back at his friend in a heartbeat.

“Look…” his voice was calm and collected, which was only scaring the brown haired cadet more, making Pidge think something was _definitely_ off, “What I’m trying to say is that mermaids are not a threat.”

A moment was needed in order to absorb the information. Ok. So Pidge has heard it right the first time.

But hearing something and believe it was two different things, “ _WHat?_ ” The voice came out high but scratchy, “I think I lost you back there… Did you just said that-”

“Pidge! This is serious!” Keith seemed to be losing his cool with every word he uttered, “You heard exactly what I said.” He took a deep breath, locking his gaze with the amber sight of his roommate's eyes, “This is important, so just-”

“No! Nononono!” Light brown hair shook, following the movement of Pidge’s head, “Look! I followed you through the whole, “The garrison has been lying to us about the war and the missions” deal, because, _yes,_ I have pretty much figured that too. And that _does_ make sense.” The cadet stopped, making sure Keith was listing to every word, “But how do you, from _that_ , conclude that mermaids _are not_ our enemies!?”

Both Keith’s hands rose to his head, “Just like I said,” He made an effort to explain, words slowly leaving his mouth like he was talking to a child. Keith extended his arms as he spoke, gesturing to nothing in particular, “The garrison lied to us about the war! Mermaids don’t feed on humans and-”

“Then why do they kill us?” She almost hissed.

“To defend themselves!” Keith fired back, “Because _we’re_ trying to kill them!”

Pidge was silence for a moment, eyes looking low and Keith was sure his friend was thinking. He breathed out a sigh, instantly relieved that he had finally managed to get through.

“How hard did you knock your head the other day?” Pidge stated, and Keith had to use all his strength to muffle a groan, “Oh wait! I get it!” The small ray of hope that peered through him was suddenly hidden by the cloudiness of the words that followed, “Is that mermaid’s spell still affecting you?”

“No.” The black haired teen stated, irritation slightly overflowing out of his words, “Pidge… I’ve told you a thousand times.” He was speaking slowly again, mumbling every word carefully as if it would help his roommate understand them. Pidge allowed him to recite the same words again, listening to them with a raised eyebrow and pursed lips.

“The garrison has lied to us. They lied about everything and all we believe to know about mermaids.” Pidge eyebrow rose at that. Highly convenient. “Just- Listen…” Keith tried to get his friend's attention as soon as he realised Pidge was doubting his arguments again, “There is this energy source called quintessence in the ocean’s floor. The garrison is trying to obtain it, and for that, they created this whole war to make us and everyone else believe that mermaids are a threat to humans. But they’re not!”

“What energy source?” His teammate questioned curiously, amber eyes suddenly widening and sparkling with slight interest.

“I don’t know much about it…” Keith mumbled out, looking slightly away from the intense gaze on him, “It’s some sort of crystal- crystals? It grows on the ocean's floor and it’s basically how mermaids keep themselves alive in the depths…”

“That’s interesting… Mostly crazy and I have to admit that most of it actually doesn't make sense…” Keith let out a groan this time. Pidge eyed him suspiciously. “But. Ok! Let’s assume I actually bought what you’re saying and that I indeed believe that,” Amber eyes tiredly observed as Keith’s face slowly shifted into a smile, “I didn’t say I believed in you. I’m just wondering where you’re going with this… Because... you did mention something about ‘needing my help’? And I’m really missing where I appear in this whole story.” Pidge adjusted the round glasses, never breaking eye contact with Keith, “So far you’ve only stated random unbelievable information about mermaids from dubious and unknown sources…”

“Yeah… About _needing your help_?” Keith’s face seemed paler than usual, “That’s the complicated part…”

“Because the previous one was easy…”

He barely bored to acknowledge the comment, a bit too used to them by now “... Mermaids use this quintessence stuff, actually, it’s more like they _need_ this energy to survive. It’s like their life source.”

 _And how did you exactly learned that, Keith?_ Pidge's eyebrow rose, but not a single word was uttered.

“Therefore, a mermaid can’t survive outside of the ocean… And,”

Those words were the small piece of information Pidge had been missing. Suddenly, the entire conversation clicked into place. Suddenly everything made sense.

“You? You want to put _that thing_ back in the water?”

Keith seemed to frown at her words, “His name is Lance,” his voice was venomous, “and, yes! I need your help to rescue him.”

“His? Rescue? And HIM?” The smaller cadet had definitely screamed the last word, “Are you completely out of your mind? You can’t be serious. Those things have killed thousands of us!”

“And haven’t we killed them too? They’re just defending themselves! This whole war is a lie so the garrison can-”

“It was it, wasn’t it?” Keith actually stopped speaking for a moment, purple suddenly darting to witness the look of realisation that appeared in Pidge’s face, “Every single thing you said… Was that thing that told you!”

Keith bared his teeth, not even bothering to cover how bitter Pidge’s words had made him, “Lance is not a thing!” His voice wasn’t as loud as it could have been, and that only made him sound more threatening. “And he is not a lier!” He almost spat the words, clearly understanding where Pidge’s reasoning was going. Keith looked at his friend, easily noticing how the amber eyes were wide. How the pale skin grew whiter. How the entirety of that small body seemed to shake in syntony with the tone of his voice.

He found himself stopping for a second, words suddenly forming in his mind, and he tried again, “Look, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I yelled at you. And I know this is rushed and sudden, but I fucked up.” Keith tried to keep his voice steady. Easier said than done, “You’re my friend Pidge, and I wouldn’t ask something like this if I didn’t trust you. Please. If something happens to him I’ll never forgive myself.” Keith took a deep breath, “I’ve never asked you anything, but please. Just this once, help me out!”

“You can’t be serious…” Pidge words came out mumbled and slightly hollowed, “You’re completely insane. Mermaids killed your entire family! They took your brother away and you want to put everything on the line just to save one of them? Do you even realise what will happen if you're caught?!”

Keith tried to refute, but Pidge was faster, “No.” The voice cut him out, “All this time, I did think of you as my friend, Keith. I still do. And that’s the only reason why I’m not taking you to the infirmary to be mentally evaluated, right now. I’m not ranting you out to the higher-ups, but I’m not helping you either.”

“Pidge...”

“I’ve seen the things those monsters do with my own eyes! Mermaids took everything away from me! They destroyed my family! I thought that you of all people would understand that,” Keith looked at those furious amber eyes, trying to offer a reply. But he couldn’t. “I guess I was wrong.”

Pidge was never wrong.

He did understand. He knew exactly what it was like to lose everything to the sea. He knew what it was like to witness those he cared for being taken away from him.  What it was like to be powerless, unable to do anything, but watch and cry.

Keith needed Pidge's help if he was going to accomplish anything. If he wanted a chance to return Lance to the ocean alive.

“You’re not wrong…” His voice was quieter than it had been, he tried to find the words that would make Pidge listen and help him. But unfortunately, words had always been more of a weakness than a strength to him. “I lost my family too. Hell, I lost a lot more than my family, I lost hope and my will to fight.” He could feel Pidge’s gaze on him, staring a hole through his body.

Keith feared he would waver if he tried to look at his friend, so he continued to face the floor, “I was ready to end it all, but he saved me.” A small pause, followed by a muffled dry laugh, “I guess I just want to return the favour.”

The black haired cadet did not utter another word, allowing the silence that followed to engulf them both. He couldn’t bring himself to speak, afraid it would come off wrong. Pidge sighed.

“What about Shiro?” Keith couldn’t help but stare at the figure in front of him, with a tad of surprise, “Have you forgotten him? Are you giving up on him?”

“No! Of course, I’m- This doesn’t have anything to do with-”

“Would you still help that thing if you knew that was it that killed him and everyone on that mission?” Pidge was voice didn’t flatter, remaining as cold as the ocean waters.

Keith was about to protest, but another voice filled the silence first, “I’m not saving one of the monsters that killed-” Pidge stopped, unable to finish the sentence and her trail of thought, focusing on fighting the tears instead. “Those fangs. Those claws. Everything in it. Could be the same claws that attacked my brother, that hurt him and took him to the depths. I am not helping something that could have- that could be responsible for- Matt.”

There were tears. Running freely like they had so many times before. No attempt to wipe them away. Pidge had tried more than once, the result was more tears blurring the amber eyes even faster than before.

Keith remained quiet. He hadn’t been looking at his roommate for a while, and now that Pidge had gone suspiciously quiet, he made sure to keep his gaze away. Instead, Keith decided to focus on the words that his friend had whispered.

Pidge wasn’t the only one able to put the pieces together. He could be slower, much slower sometimes, but he usually got there, “You- You’re. Matt is your brother?”

It came out as a question, but Keith already knew the answer.

Pidge had always been particularly interested in the Kerberos mission. On Shiro’s disappearance. In what Keith knew about it. In what he was willing to risk to learn more.

Matt was Pidge’s brother. And Pidge was looking for him just as much as Keith had been looking for Shiro. Pidge was looking for the truth just as much as he had been. Pidge had started to believe he was gone just as much as he had started to.

But, Shiro was alive and so could Matt be. And they could get them back for sure if they just rescued Lance.

“Matt is alive!” Keith busted out without thinking.

Pidge almost let out a dry laugh, “Let me guess who told you that… _Lance_.” Somehow his friend had managed to spit every single bit of sarcasm left in the world into the word.

“Please, Pidge… If we get him back to the ocean…”

“Every word is a lie!”

“Lance is telling the truth! Shiro is alive and so is Matt.” Pidge looked at the way Keith's purple eyes seemed to be brighter than usual. It was obvious he was holding on to those words. So obvious that he believed every tiny thing that creature had told him. It was obvious that thing knew exactly what to say to manipulate him.

A part of Pidge wanted to believe it too. It would make so many things so much easier. Nightmares disappear. Cries and pleads unnecessary. But, in the end, lies would always to be lies. And Pidge wasn’t ready to deal with the aftermath that followed them.

It had happened enough times, more than the small human would’ve liked to endure.

Not again.

“I don’t blame you, Keith.” Pidge couldn’t find the courage to. “Don’t blame me either for not believing in any of this.”

Their eyes locked, and he knew it was a lost cause. He knew he was just losing time. Lance was on a counter, and he had no time to lose.

Pidge’s help would’ve made things easier and faster. But Pidge’s help wasn’t everything.

He had studied the facility. He had managed to find out the exact place where they kept him. He had part of a plan in mind.

But above all, he had a promise to keep.

He had promised he would return Lance to the oceans alive, and he would.

Keith inhaled softly before speaking, “I don’t blame you. I actually expected this to happen.”

And he had his mind made up from the very beginning.

“I’ve always been on my own, after all. This is no different.” His voice was calm. There wasn’t a tiny bit of emotion there, “I don’t need your help. I’ll do it myself like always.” He turned around, heading towards the door.

“Keith?” He heard the exact moment his roommate’s voice cracked, how surprise overflowed in it. Even guilt, maybe? Not that it mattered. “Where do you think you’re going?”

A question.

He turned around, facing the cadet, and without ever flattering, answered, “I’m going to save him with or _without_ your help _._ ”

A threat.

Pidge barely muffled the dry laugh, “With the security protocols of the garrison's lab facility?” The tone was directed at him like a bullet, clearly intentioned to make him stop, making think about what he was about to do. Making him realise what it meant to disobey. The consequences he would face for opposing the garrison.

He had already thought about it. He knew the consequences.

Pidge found the need to state them. “The only thing you’re going to do is get yourself killed!”

A yell.

He couldn’t help the small twisted smile that appeared on his lips, “I know…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Silently slides a package with a 9k chapter in hopes of forgiveness*
> 
> (*cough* Lance was supposed to appear in chapter 12 but this got too damn long and I had to cut it on the scene before he appears, so first thing next chapter is that beautiful boy *cough*)
> 
> Hi everyone! Yes I'm still alive! Yes I'm still writing this.
> 
> First of all thank you so much for putting up with the 3 MONTHS that took me to update. Seriously, life decided to play some tricks on me. January is the end of the semester so I already expected it to be hell, but right when I thought it was over and I could start working on this again, and ignoring the annoying block at comes after not typing for so long, some sort of evil descends upon my family - my grandma breaks an arm, my mom has a car accident, and my life is basically upside down. (They are both fine and kicking btw). I'm really sorry for leaving you guys on such a terrible cliffhanger for so long, but I had no idea my life would become a trainwreck like this.
> 
> Also a hundred apologies for taking months to reply to some of the messages you all sent me. I've read all of them and I appreciate them a lot. Thank you so much, everyone.
> 
> On another note, I'd like to thank fizzysodas for mentioning this story in her Klance FicRec Masterpost. Bless you <3 \o/
> 
> And thank you for reading this, for all the kudos, comments, bookmarks and subscriptions, and above all thank you so much for your patience in waiting for my sorry ass to try to get back to writing after months without typing a word. Eheh
> 
> Anyway, next chapter is pretty much the last one, since chapter 14 is a small epilogue, and I'll probably update both of them together. So, this long ride is about to come to an end, which is both thrilling and sad. Thanks again for following this story.

**Author's Note:**

> I know there are a lot of mermaid lance aus but I really wanted to write this ^^'  
>  I'm not sure how many chapters the fic will have but I think around 13. Feedback is always appreciated, here or in my [Tumblr](https://sakumiyukime.tumblr.com).  
>  Hope you enjoy it! Thanks for reading. Special thanks to my friend Inês that helped me out with the design for mermaid Lance and to Bibs for helping out with everything else.


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